The True Story of 





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Book 



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£3 o 




Copyright by Underwood c(- Underwood, N. Y., 19H 

William II King of Prussia and Emperor of Germany 



THE TRUE STORY OF THE 

Great European War 

FACTS, EXPLANATIONS 
AND DESCRIPTIONS 



OF THE WORLD-STAGGERING CRASH OF EVENTS, GATHERED 

IMPARTIALLY FROM EVERY SOURCE OF RELIABLE 

AUTHORITY ON BOTH SIDES OF THE 

GREAT CONFLICT 



What You Want to Know About the War of Wars, as Told by 

the Military Experts, War Correspondents, Statesmen 

and Rulers of All Lands 



BY 

Prof. C. M. STEVENS, Ph.D. 



Illustrated from Pliotograplis Taken on the Field of BattU 
Official War Maps and Diagrams 



THE HAMMING PUBLISHING CO. 

CHICAGO 



> 



sfv 



Copyright, 1914, by 
W, J. HAINSFUETHEE. 



SEP 17-19J4 



©CI. A 37 OG 3 I 



■;i i 



CONTENTS 

BOOK I 

THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 

PAGE 

The Deluge. Columbia's Vision 10 

First Thoughts of the War op Wars 

The Impossible Has Happened 11 

The Greatest Cause of War 12 

The Rage for Destruction 12 

The Task of America '. 13 

Imperial Militarism and Religion 14 

Last Message of the Pope 16 

Judgment Some Day. Poem 17 

Censorship 

The Armageddon of Silence 19 

The Censorship Puts Us Back a Century 19 

How It Works in War-Ridden Lands 20 

Heroes and Heroic Deeds 21 

The Cry of the Women. Poem 21 

Death in the Dark 22 

First Experiences in a Great War 

Commonplace Horrors 25 

Individual Experiences 26 

What a Poor Mother Says. Poem in French 28 

Facing Hardships 29 

Scenes in Paris 30 

Americans Caught in the Cordons of War 34 

First Food in Three Days 35 

Scenes of Liege Skirmishing 36 



iv CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Arrival of the Philadelphia 37 

National Anthem Heralds Arrival 38 

Early Stages op the War 

Chronology of the First Two "Weeks 40 

A General View 43 

The Hour. Fagan 's Poem 44 

Liege 44 

Siezing the Whole Town 45 

Wounds Worse Than Death 47 

Fresh Troops to Slaughter 48 

Dead Buried in Heaps 49 

The Conquest of Liege. Phillips' Poem 50 

Dickon's Picture of War at Liege 51 

A Soldier 's Letter to His Sweetheart 51 

Machine Obedience of Men 52 

Word-Picture of Battle at Diest 53 

Death of Horses From Exhaustion 54 

To Europe. Stirling's Poem 55 

War in Alsace 56 

Adventures on Bicycles 57 

Shot as a Spy 58 

Search for Dead in Cornfields 58 

Signs of War's Disaster 59 

Alsatian Peasant 's Story 60 

Wounded Left in the Roads 61 

Capture of Brussels 62 

The Burgomaster's Appeal 62 

The War Indemnity 63 

Description of Occupation of Brussels 63 

Jap 's Move on China 65 

Jap Cruisers Scour the Sea ^Q 

Defenses Reinforced ! GQ 

Swiss Army Mobilized 67 

Americans in Distress 68 

War as Seen From Holland 69 

Russian Advance Into Germany 70 

Aircraft Episodes 72 

Watching for Air Messages 74 

Victories of Servian Troops 7o 

Auto Dash for the Frontier 76 

The German Advance ' ° 

The Russian Situation SO 



CONTENTS v 

PAGE 

An Enigma to War Experts 82 

The Crush of Numbers 83 

Two Million Men in Death-Grapple 85 

The Vast Battle Line 86 

The Franco-British Armies Beaten Back 87 

The Fall of Namur 88 

Allies Retirement Explained 89 

Scenes of War at Charleroi 89 

Wounded Fill the Town 89 

French Open the Canonading 90 

Smashing an Aeroplane 91 

Vast Movement on to Paris 92 

German Dispatch : "Joffre's Army Broken Up.'' 92 

The Russian Invasion 93 

Suffering Throughout Belgium 94 

Boy Scouts Mobilized 95 



BOOK II 

CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF THE GREAT WAR 

Opinions of the Most Noted Leaders 

A Graphic Vision 97 

Comments of Christian Leaders 98 

The Question. Poem 100 

View Point of Americans 101 

French Views of Causes 104 

Views of Socialism 105 

Can It Be? Poem 107 

German Official Statements Ill 

Opening the Eyes of the World 112 

Reasoning From the Turkish Revolution 112 

Austria Against Servia 113 

Germany Also Menaced 114 

Demands of Austria 115 

War Against the Uncultured 116 

Russian Statement Considered 117 

Die Deutsche Panzerfaust. Poem in German 118 

Statement of the Imperial Chancellor 118 



vi CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Obligations Discovered 119 

William II, Prince of Peace. Viereck's Poem 122 

An Appeal to Sweden for Germany 123 

The Jewish View 121 

Imperialism and Democracy. A Definition 126 

The Only Peace. Poem. .'. 127 



Smashing the Machinery of Civilization 

The Staggering Blow 129 

Has Christianity Failed 130 

Opinions of American Scholarship 1 33 

The Right to Bloody Violence 135 

The Call to the Colors. Poem 136 

Living in the Time of a Great War 136 

The Vast Sacrifice 137 



Neutrality op the United States 

The President's Appeal for Neutrality 140 

Americans of Many Nations 141 

Must Be Neutral in Thought and Action 142 



Diplomatic Documents Leading Up to War 

First Events 143 

Note to the Servians 144 

Austria 's Circular Note 146 

Servia's Reply 148 

Servia's Reply Denounced by Austria 152 

Russian Statement 153 

German Emperor's Reply to the Czar 154 

Germany 's Sharp Note 154 

Russian Proclamation 155 

Russian Promise to Holland 156 

Japan 's Ultimatum 156 

Japan's Promise to America 159 

English Statement 159 

Kitchener's Instructions to Soldiers 160 

England's Praise to Belgium 161 

French Pledge to Restore Belgium 161 



CONTENTS vii 

PAGE 

The Great Test of American Diplomacy 

America Surrounded by War 163 

Stability of American Government 164 

Cost of the War 164 

What is Costs to Kill a Man 165 

The Red Cross Nurse. Poem 167 

Switzerland as a War Hospital 167 

America 's Part 168 

Dogs for the Red Cross 169 

That Graves May Not Be Nameless 170 

Rank and File. Dobson's Poem 170 

. Stupendous Work of Army Surgeons 170 

A Belgian Surgeon's Researches 171 

Fatal Wounds From Artillery 173 

American Gamblers in Food Supplies 

Those Who Corner the Food Markets 177 

President Acts to Restrain Rise in Prices 178 

American Construction Contrasted With European De- 
struction 179 

The War and South America 

Latin American Trade 183 

Direct Steamship Lines 184 

Aggressive Action Fair in Trade 185 

On the Pacific Coast 186 

Undoubted Opportunity 187 

American Shipping Bill 188 

War Measures 

Military Strategy 190 

Fortifications 192 

The Concert of Europe 193 

How the Great Alliances Were Formed 194 

The Triple Alliance 194 

The Triple Entente 195 

International Arbitration 197 

War Songs of the Nations 197 



viii " CONTENTS 

BOOK III 

MEANS AND SOURCES OF THE GREAT WAR 

PAGE 

The Merciless Machinery 

Contrasts in the Vision cf Heroism 201 

Contrasts in Methods and Means 202 

Role Played in the Tragedy by Electricity 203 

Commands Flashed Across Space 205 

Half-Ton Missiles Hurled Seven Miles 207 

Cement Forts and Disappearing Guns 209 

The Army of Mercy 211 

Submarines 212 

Mines in the Present' War 218 

Wireless in the Present War 221 

Wireless in the Balkan War 224 

Portable Wireless in the Field 225 

Automobiles in War 226 

Airships in War 227 

American Devices 228 

The Poet's Dream. Tennyson 234 

Zeppelin 's Airships 235 

War Strength of the Triple Alliance 237 

War Strength of the Triple Entente 238 

The Age-Long Conflict Between France and Germany 

The Ancient Beginning 240 

Conflict of a Thousand Years Ago 241 

The Weaker Inheritance 242 

Alsace and Lorraine in Every War .' 243 

Metz and Strassburg in Sieges 246 

Bismarck's Idea 247 

The "Zabern Affair.". 248 

Declaration of the Rights of Man '. 249 

Rival Armaments 251 

How Paris Is Defended 253 

Hapsbuegs, Romanovs, Hohenzollerns 

Three Families and Their Cost to Europe 255 

The Start of a Bitter Feud 257 



CONTENTS ix 

PAGE 

Hapsburg Tragedies 258 

Hohenzollern Chronicles 261 

Reluctant to Rule Over the Rnssias 264 

Nicholas II, Emperor of Russia 266 

Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria 266 

William II, Emperor of Germany 267 

King Albert of Belgium at the Front 268 

Sentry Refuses the King Admittance to Hospital 269 

Side Lights on the Great Issues 

George V, King of Great Britain 271 

English Kinship Among Royalty of Europe 272 

Mohammedan or Christian 273 

Geographical Description of War-Torn Towns 277 

The Kingdom of Servia 290 

The Austro-Hungarian Empire 292 

Belgium 293 

The Belgian People 294 

The French Republic 298 

The German Empire 303 

Resources of Germany in 1913 304 

The Hohenzollerns 307 

The Russian Empire 307 

Holland 309 

The Hague 311 

Colonies of the Warring Nations 312 

American Prosperity and the War 315 

The Belgian Protest Against Airship Bombs 316 



THE DELUGE 

As one who dreams a dreadful dream and moans in fitful sleep, 
Columbia broods in anguish o'er the hell across the deep, 
And, clear-eyed, save for futile tears, she sees great nations sink 
With all their brains and manhood under Reason 's level brink. 
She sees long years of kindness taken from the human race 
And every line of gospel flung into its writer's face. 

The war lords snap their fingers and with their insane commands 
Brave millions offer up their lives and march to hostile lands. 
Among the stars the great god Mars, white hot to thrust and kill, 
Is sneering at the tiny ants who crawl to do his will. 
The teachings of the Nazarene, the dreams great souls have told 
Are trampled 'neath the charger's hoof and sacrificed for Gold. 

The peasant in his lowly home sits white-faced and forlorn 
To wait the marching thousands with their selfishness and scorn. 
To-day he has his little all — his home, his field, his wife ; 
To-morrow, when the storm has passed, he will not have his life ; 
Or if, perchance, his life be spared for later ghastly scenes, 
Among the ruins he will sit and wonder what God means. 

Gone all of our illusions and the dreams of peace we wrought, 
Forgotten all the lessons that the blood-smeared sword has taught, 
The grim retreat from Moscow when Napoleon's legions died, 
The awful field of Austerlitz and Jena 's crimson tide ; 
The gentler, nobler part of man and all that knowledge brings 
Are banished from the Present to appease the lust of kings. 

Afar we hear the charger's scream, the slim boy's dying moan, 
As on the red and ravaged field he sobs to God alone; 
Afar we see the plodding hosts go blindly to their fate 
Like dumb and willing cattle driven through a country gate. 
As one who dreams a dreadful dream and moans in fitful sleep 
Columbia broods in anguish o'er the hell across the deep 

— William F. Kirk. 
10 



BOOK I 

Survey of the World-Staggering 
Disaster to Humanity 

The impossible has happened. The incredible has 
forced itself into flaming facts. 

The calamity that has fallen upon the world is 
utterly beyond description or comprehension. 

The green fields are stained with blood; houses, 
factories, and cities are battered down. 

Human lives are burned up like coals in a furnace. 

Death and agony inconceivable, and no man can 
truly say why the killing or why the war. 

Years of science, civilization, and peace end in the 
greatest, bloodiest, most brutal war, as unnecessary 
as any that the world has known. 

Words are meaningless ; description is futile. The 
world's higher power for destruction — civilization 
transformed into a great international cutthroat — 
that is the picture this earth presents after nineteen 
centuries of ''Christianity." 

The world is reminded now of the power with 
which Carry le described war's horror: 

" Horrible enough! A whole marchfield. strewed 
with shell splinters, cannon shot, ruined tumbrils, 
and dead men and horses, stragglers still remaining 

11 



12 THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 

not so much as buried. Aud those red mould heaps : 
Ay, there lie the shells of men, out of which all the 
life and virtue have been blown; and now are they 
swept together and crammed down out of sight, like 
blown egg-shells ! ' ' 

The greatest single fighting force ever marshaled 
in history now goes from mobilization to war. The 
impending collision will be with Europe; the crash 
will shake the world. 

Germany, Austria, Russia, England, Belgium, 
France, Portugal, Servia, and Japan have sprung 
into the arena, each screaming out that the other fel- 
low began it, each loaded down with arms and troops, 
yet claiming a desire only to keep the peace. 

They all solemnly swear they are on the defensive ; 
and they are all trying to strike the first offensive 
blow. 

THE GREATEST CAUSE OF WAR 

Dr. Frank Crane has said editorially a great truth, 
as follows: 

"The greatest cause for war is military prepared- 
ness. When a nation spends millions of dollars for 
fireworks, sooner or later they want to see them fired 
off. When five hundred thousand young men have 
been practising with guns for years, by and by they 
want to shoot somebody." 

THE RAGE FOR DESTRUCTION 

Gunpowder has blown the boundaries of European 
nations into torn and twisted lines many times dur- 



THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 13 

ing the last 125 years. Then, through a retaliatory 
fate, the same mixture of saltpetre, sulphur, and 
charcoal has battered to debris the barriers marking 
the new borders and restored the old. The political 
topography of Europe bids fair to undergo another 
violent reconstruction through the same pitiless 
explosive as an outcome of the present gigantic 
struggle. 

No nation has ever had the opportunity now before 
this country to prove that "Peace hath its victories 
no less renowned than war." 

Indeed, years hence, when history finally records 
the results of the cataclysm into which Europe has 
plunged the whole world, it will be written, we hope 
and believe, that the United States, great as it was 
before the conflict, won the most gigantic and most 
lasting triumph in the annals of all time by stead- 
fastly remaining at peace. 

Our people have a mission to perform for man- 
kind — an ideal to keep resolutely and fearlessly in 
mind, so that in the centuries to come, civilization 
can point to our course as an inspiring and convinc- 
ing demonstration that a nation's enduring achieve- 
ments and noblest blessings to its own and to others 
are in peace, not in war. 

Slaughtering each other by the hundreds simply 
because they live on different sides of a geographi- 
cal boundary line is not the true mission of man on 
earth, nor will civilization long applaud the prowess 
of the man or nation that boasts of having swept the 
greatest number of human beings from earth by the 



14 THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 

sword. The world has never seen a conflict of arms 
on such a gigantic scale as that which has just begun 
abroad, and where it will end is as far beyond human 
comprehension as Eternity itself. 

THE TASK OF AMERICA 

Firm in this faith, let us hold ourselves happy in 
this republic. We are, perhaps, to be the saviors of 
the civilization imperiled by the sudden breaking 
down of the machinery of civilized society abroad. 
But we shall not work alone. The aroused and indig- 
nant energy of other nations will soon unite with us, 
that social order does not perish from the earth, 
and that, out of European chaos, a real and substan- 
tial advance shall come to human welfare. 

IMPERIAL MILITARISM AND RELIGION" 

Of the fourteen hundred millions of human beings 
on this earth, nearly all pray to some god. 

And the nations at war in Europe all pray to the 
same god. A hideous, pathetic, pitiful sight that God 
looks down upon, as he turns his eyes toward the 
praying murderers that look up to Him, each asking 
for victory. 

"Help me, O God, to capture that town, though I 
kill all the women and children," one ruler prays, 
and thinks that God will answer and help him. 

"Help me, O God, to defend this city, to kill the 
men that besiege it, to attack their city in turn and 
destroy it, though I kill all their women and chil- 



THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 15 

dren," and the praying man believes that God is with 
him and will help him in his plans of murder. 

Butchery by day and night on the water, on the 
land and in the air, prayers asking the Creator of the 
world to help them in their killing, seventeen millions 
of armed men ready for the game of murder, indus- 
try dead, agriculture dead, science, progress, every 
good power on the earth, paralyzed. 

And that is war. 

PRAYER OF THE WAR-LORD 

God of my Fathers, grant me aid 
That I may rout my countless foes! 

By Thee were guns and cannons made, 
From Thee the joy of battle flows. 

God, who gave me might and power, 
Thou knowest that my heart is pure. 

Be with me in this awful hour, 
That I and mine may still endure. 

Thou art the God who loveth war, 
And famine, rapine, blood and death ; 

1 pray Thee stand beside me, for 

' Thou knowest what my spirit saith. 

The soul of me is linked with Thine 

To bid the blood of heroes flow. 
The death we grant them is divine, 

And in Thy name I bid them go. 

God of my Fathers, still be kind 

To them who raise Thy banner high, 

While Thou and I together find 
The surest wav for them to die. 



16 THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 

They do my bidding, God, look down 
And bless the sword that I have drawn. 

My blight shall fall on field and town, 
And thousands shall not see the dawn. 

To Thee, God, I give all praise 

That Thou hast made my hand so strong ; 

That now, as in my father's days, 
The King and Thee can do no wrong. 

— Edward 8. Van Zile. 

To be neutral as a people and to keep ourselves as 
individuals free from the inflaming touch of war 
passion, is the clear duty of every American. 

The President of the United States, from the bed- 
side of his dying wife, appealed to the nations for 
some means of reaching peace for Europe. The last 
thoughts of the dying helpmate was for the great 
responsibility of her husband in this awful crisis in 
the life of nations. 

The Pope was stricken to death by the great calam- 
ity to civilization. A few minutes before the end 
came, he said that the Almighty in His infinite mercy 
was removing him from the world to spare him the 
anguish of the awful war. 

The last message sent out to his followers over the 
world was given in a dispatch as f ollows : 

At this moment, when nearly the whole of Europe is being 
dragged into the vortex of a most terrible war, with its present 
dangers and miseries, and the consequences to follow, the 
thought of which must strike every one with grief and horror, 
we, whose care is the life and welfare of so many citizens and 



THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 17 

peoples, cannot but be deeply moved and our heart wrung with 
the bitterest sorrow. 

And in the midst of this universal confusion and peril, we feel 
and know that both fatherly love and apostolic ministry demand 
of us that we should with all earnestness turn the thoughts of 
Christendom thither, "whence cometh help" — to Christ, the 
Prince of Peace and the most powerful mediator between God 
and man. 

We charge, therefore, the Catholics of the whole world to 
approach the throne of Grace and Mercy, each and all of them, 
and more especially the clergy, whose duty furthermore it will 
be to make in every parish, as their bishops shall direct, public 
supplication, so that the merciful God may, as it were, be wearied 
with the prayers of His children and speedily remove the evil 
causes of war, giving to them who rule to think the thoughts of 
peace and not of affliction. 

From the palace of the Vatican, the second day of August, 
1914. PIUS X, Pontifex Maximus. 

JUDGMENT SOME DAY 

Somewhere, above this war of hate, 

God broods upon His throne ; 
He scans the running sands of Pate, 

And sees the end — alone. 

Somewhere, above these stricken lands, 

Almighty God looks down : 
Perhaps with ruthless, guiding hands, 

Perhaps with angry frown. 

Whether He planned this scourge of flame, 

No man to-day can tell ; 
These kings all call upon His name 

To bless their shot and shell. 



18 THE WORLD-STAGGERING WAR 

Whether behind this drama dark, 

God moves or devils lurk, 
Swinging his scythe in widening arc, 

The Reaper is at work. 

We sicken at the awful cost, 

Youth slaughtered, genius slain, 

Mercy forgotten, pity lost, 
Blood soaking hill and plain., 

But some day those who rule these lands 
Shall face God's judgment throne, 

With naked hearts and reddened hands, 
Unguarded and alone. 

With those who died and those who wept, 

These kings shall answer God 
For plains and cities cannon swept, 

For ruin spread abroad. 

His voice shall give them their reward 

For all eternal time ; 
Forgiveness if He desired the sword, 

Or His curse for a godless crime. 

— William C. Stevens in Chicago Herald. 



CENSORSHIP 

The Armageddon of Modern History Fought In 
the Black Silence of Midnight, Hidden From 
the Sight of the World. 

As if to stand as an example for scripture, which 
declares that ''everyone that doeth evil hateth the 
light," the mighty inventions for communication 
over the earth have been cut into silence as deep as 
in any period of the dark ages. 

In order to strike the deadliest blows at unex- 
pected, and therefore undefended, spots, all knowl- 
edge of war operations are suppressed. 

THE CENSORSHIP PUTS US BACK A CENTURY 

A hundred years ago the United States was at war 
with England, and the burning of Washington, the 
battle of Fort Erie and the attack on Baltimore, dur- 
ing which Key wrote his "Star-Spangled Banner," 
were events of thrilling interest. But news traveled 
slowly 100 years ago. It was days before New York 
knew what had happened, and then only through the 
use of relays of couriers rushing on horseback over 
roads that were none of the best. Since then we have 
developed a vast mechanism for the collection and 
distribution of news. 

And now, due to the censorship, the mechanism is 
almost useless, and we are back not so very far from 

19 



20 CENSORSHIP 

where people were a century ago. It is hard to imag- 
ine that while the battle of Waterloo was being 
fought on June 18, London was just receiving the 
news of the reverse of the Prussians at Ligny on the 
sixteenth. Even on the twentieth, the Times an- 
nounced only that "a Mr. Sutton had heard the news 
of a great victory," the official announcement not 
coming until the next day. 

The instant dissemination of war news reached its 
highest point in the Spanish-American War. Ever 
since then the more rigorous censorships established 
by combatants have interfered with efficient news 
gathering until to-day the minds attempting to the 
limit of their capacity to grasp and understand the 
events in Europe can secure but the sorriest and most- 
unstable data from which to extract a true concep- 
tion of what is going on. It is but another instance 
of the retroactive effects of war that the great record- 
ing instrument so carefully built up during the past 
century now is rendered useless. 

HOW IT WORKS IX THE WAR-RIDDEN LANDS 

The soldiers in the field see only the narrow ring 
about them. War correspondents say that German 
prisoners expressed surprise on finding that they had 
been fighting Belgians. Uhlan officers could not 
understand how English officers could be on the 
French staff. 

See already how it has worked out in France : 
"Families left behind never receive news from 
their soldiers. Those who have gone have just 



CENSORSHIP 21 

stepped out — been swallowed up. Their families may 
write to them, in special envelopes addressed to the 
war office, but they will never know where they are 
until they come home again. So secretly, so silently, 
is the war being waged." 

This is the silence that hangs over every home in 
France. And here is the way in which any day may 
see it broken : 

"If the soldiers do not come home again, a card 

from the war office will come, saying: ' , 

belonging to you, has fallen on the field of honor.' " 

That is all. 

HEROES AND HEROIC DEEDS 

What becomes of the heroes ? It would seem that 
nations are eager to thrill over tidings of brave men 
and heroic deeds brought all fresh and inspiring 
from the front. All news is reduced to cold, bare 
bulletins of geography and net results. 

Modern warfare, so far as we are permitted to see 
it at work, appears to be a gigantic, soulless mecha- 
nism, turning its blood-smeared wheels in darkness, 
traceable only by the dead and wounded that pile 
higher and higher behind it. 

THE CRY OF THE WOMEN 

They tell us of wars and rumors of wars, 

Arid the orders of kings to men, 
And little they heed of the sorrow decreed 

By the stroke of a ruler's pen. 



22 CENSORSHIP 

And little they care for child and for wife, 
When the wife and the child make moan, 

While nations fight for their ruler's greed, 
And the fighter dies alone. 

The woman with hair like sunset gold, 

The woman with hair like coal, 
Each of them loses the love of her life, 

The man that is half of her soul. 

Aye ! you that flatter a ruler 's greed, 

And you that fawn at his power, 
And you that fight when there is no need — 

You, too, shall come to your hour ! 

When in woe and wretchedness comes that hour, 

Your guilt shall your souls bewray, 
And you shall utter your cry for peace 

As we cry for peace this day. 

— Clara II. Davidson. 

DEATH TX THE DARK 

There never was a time in war when the soldier 
was so completely swallowed up and hidden. Great 
Britain, for instance, will not know until official 
reports of a battle reveal it, where her troops have 
gone. The soldiers are permitted to write only post 
cards. These, if they reach England, carry no post 
mark. The soldier may write that he is well. That 
is all. 

His relatives and friends know only that he has 
disappeared behind the cloud of censorship, and may 
come out only in a casualty list. Regiments, bri- 



CENSORSHIP 23 

gades, and divisions march behind the curtain and 
are no longer seen or heard of. 

War never before so utterly shrouded itself in the 
terrible mystery of silence. 

The mood of Americans to-day is one of awe, of 
sorrow, of helpless wonder, and of profound and 
reverent gratitude for this, our blessed island of 
peace, amid the seas of universal war. 

Prof. Schevill, of the University of Chicago, says 
behind this war is "the whole civilization of Europe, 
which, brilliant though it be in some respects, must 
be suffering from many and wasting cankers to have 
been brought to this sorry pass. Let the neswpapers 
and diplomats expatiate as much as they will on this 
or that incident which caused the war, the real rea- 
sons lie deep down at the very roots of our culture. 
They lie in our wild pursuit of wealth, in our ram- 
pant commercialism, in our race hatreds, in our 
insufficient love of our fellow men, in our competitive 
and military psychology, and in a hundred other 
things constituting in their totality what we boast- 
ingly refer to as our civilization." 

Prof. Schevill makes war look like the mad work 
of a mob. But it has all the characteristics of 
individuals. 

The history of nations is full of wasted effort and 
misguided zeal. Life is strewn with blasted hopes 
as eternal space is strewn with dead worlds. It is 
strange that the nations must make the same mis- 
takes over and over and over again. Struggling for 
the same shattered ideals, even fighting on the very 



24 



CENSORSHIP 



same battlefields which time and again have been 
drenched with the blood of determined men battling 
for a futile cause. 

Prof. Schevill continues: "But these battered 
and impoverished people will be preserved for no 
other purpose than for new wars and new disasters 
if they do not fit themselves out with a new mind. 
And that means that the individual — for everything 
depends in the last analysis upon him — must learn 
the lesson of peace and love, for which in Europe 
much more than in America he is as yet not greatly 
receptive. If the European man does not acquire a 
new set of dominant ideas, the present war, irrespec- 
tive of who wius or who loses, can only add another 
mass of terrible rancors to those already existing. 
Rancor piled on rancor — that way madness lies. 
Europe has followed a wrong track, and must imper- 
atively call a halt." 



The Relative Strength of the Six Great Powers. 




Triple -alliance and triple entente contrasted. 



«urt ild Germany ■ 



> pit-mat sini££le. 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN A GREAT WAR 

Humanity Leveled to a Common Denominator 

commonplace horrors 

Who was it made the inane remark, ''History never 
repeats itself"? Let him hide his head, Listen: 

We shall never witness such a scene as that which 
Brussels presented. 

Crowds rushed to the Namur gate, and many rode 
along the chaussee to be in advance of any intelli- 
gence from the army. Each man asked his neighbor 
the news ; the English lords and ladies condescended 
to speak to persons they did not know. Merchants 
closed their shops and came out to swell the general 
chorus of alarm and clamor. 

Women prayed on the flags and steps. The dull 
sound of the cannon went rolling and rolling. 

The lists of casualties are carried on from day to 
day. Travelers began to leave town, galloping away 
by the Ghent barrier. 

Prophecies began to pass for facts. He is marching 
straight on Brussels. 

It sounds like a newspaper "war extra" for Au- 
gust, 1914, but it is the story of Waterloo as William 
Makepeace Thackeray wrote it less than a score of 
years after it occurred. How prophetic it seems for 

25 



26 FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 

1914. How sinister! Then, as now, the cities were 
engaged in commerce, festivities, fighting. Then, as 
now, thousands of innocent noncombatants were 
ensnared in the toils of war. 

INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCES 

War Correspondent Eorke, writing from Brussels, 
says : 

"A visit to Haelen and other towns almost within 
a stone's throw of the German lines, shows the 
frightful devastation which the Germans have perpe- 
trated in Belgian territory. 

"For instance, at Haelen itself houses belonging to 
the townspeople have been completely wrecked. Win- 
dows were broken, furniture destroyed, and the walls 
demolished by shell fire. Even the churches have not 
been respected. The parish church at Haelen has 
been damaged considerably from shrapnel fire. 

"When the Germans entered that village, from 
which they have now been completely driven out, they 
wrote upon the walls of the church and of houses that 
'It is forbidden, under penalty of death, to enter this 
village.' Then they burned everything in sight." 

Guy Menzies, an English millionaire, coming from 
Waremme, near Liege, throws a side light on the 
scenes. He found that he was being watched on 
suspicion that he was a spy. 

"I hid in a cafe near Longdoz for a time, proceed- 
ing through Chenee to Chaud Fontaine, where I 
encountered Belgian sentries, who mistook me for a 
German spy. I convinced them of my identity and 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 27 

went on toward the south. The burgomaster of 
Vaux-sous Chevremont, who knew me, gave me safe 
conduct to Verviers. 

"Soon there began to appear signs of the terrible 
ravages resulting from the German advance. At 
Romsee every house had been burned by the Ger- 
mans. Firing was going on, and I had marvelous 
escapes. As I passed, women and children were 
fleeing panic-stricken from their homes. 

"At Fleron the people were so terrified no one 
would take me in for the night or give me food. 

1 i I went on to Berne, and Monday morning started 
again, but lost my way and found myself in Soiron. 
Here there were evidences of the fire of the Liege 
forts. German field guns lay by the side of the road 
disabled, with dead horses still in the harness. The 
ground was littered with hundreds of bodies of Ger- 
man soldiers. They were lying very close together, 
indicating that they had moved forward in close 
order. 

' ' I reached my house at Petit Rechain Monday by 
way of Verviers." 

A London newspaper correspondent in Brussels, 
writing, August 21, of the capture of that city, says : 

"I was stopped to-day by an enormous crowd of 
refugees flocking along the Brussels road on foot and 
in vehicles, and by Red Cross carts. The sight was 
pitiful. Of these persons leaving their homes, by far 
the greater number were women, many of them with 
young children whose fathers were at the front. 

"Fear and ignorance had seized the mob. As I 



28 FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 

was going out, a peasant fired his double-barreled 
gun at my motor, mistaking my fishing hat for a Ger- 
man helmet. The shot blew the tail lamp to 
pieces. 

"Brussels is curiously quiet. Big crowds are gath- 
ered around the stations to watch the wounded pass- 
ing through. A gendarme told me of one old woman 
who arrived at the barricade driving six sheep. She 
did not want the Germans to have them, but she was 
willing the Belgian soldiers should have them if they 
would keep her safe. 

11 Perhaps," she added, "the Queen and the Princes 
might need some mutton." 

WHAT A POOR MOTHER SAYS 

"Tout le monde est a la guerre 
Pour rien, pour rien, pour rien, 
C 'est ce que dit une pauvre mere : 

"Pour rien, pour rien, pour rien, 
Tous mes fils sont alk's, 
Et ne sont pas retournes ; 
Les patries n'ont rien gagne 
Et moi, rien rien. 

, "On m'a dit que la gloire 

Et l'amour pour la patrie 
Sont les plus grandes choses du monde 
Et demandent mes fils, leur vies, 
Mais une pauvre vielle mere 
Qui a donne tout ce qu'elle a, 
Elle exclame qu'une guerre 
Est indigne d'un grand etat. 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 29 

"Les patries ne gagnent rien 
Que des fleuves de sang, niisere 
Les horribles vicieuses guerres, 
Pour rien, pour rien, pour rien." 

— William Edward Wolff. 

Mrs. Ella Fla gg Young, superintendent of the 
schools of Chicago, was traveling in Sweden at the 
outbreak of war. She says : 

. ' I had to go to Christiania, Norway, but found the 
boat dangerously crowded. Accordingly a party of 
sixty of us went on a freighter to Wick, Scotland. It 
had on board a cargo of ice. 

"The Swedes sympathize with the Germans. They 
believe if Germany wins, she will take Finland and 
Lapland, and thus Sweden would have a German 
buffer between herself and the Great Bear. 

' ' On the other hand, Norwegians support England, 
and if the worst comes to the worst, the Scandina- 
vian peninsular may be divided into two hostile 
countries. 

"Before Sweden announced her neutrality, the 
army was mobilized. According to ancient custom, 
the bells were rung every hour. Farmers hurried in 
from their plows to join the colors. There were 
plenty of caps, but not enough of the rest of the 
uniform to go around." 

FACED MANY HARDSHIPS 

Tn the leaky and pitching "tramp," the three Chi- 
cago women had a day and night voyage across the 



30 FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 

tempestuous North Sea amid hardships and priva- 
tions almost unimaginable. 

Mrs. Young managed to find room in a so-called 
cabin with five other women. Mrs. Britton spent the 
night on top of a barrel. Twice their steamer was 
held up and overhauled by vigilant British cruisers. 
The three women were more dead than alive when 
they reached the Scottish coast thirty hours later. 

She said: "One encountered troops of marching 
territorials here and there, and boy scouts were much 
in evidence, but our English cousins in no respect 
whatever gave any indication of losing their balance. 

"There was a quiet, grim realization that the 
empire was on .the threshold of a great crisis, but the 
decision to confront it was taken without any sug- 
gestion of fuss or feathers. It was a remarkable 
manifestation of the stolidity and solidity of the Brit- 
ish character. One heard no more of Ulster or of 
Nationalists or suffragets. Everybody had become 
suddenly and simply Englishmen and English- 



women. ' ' 



SCENES IX PARIS 



A graphic description of scenes at Paris during the 
mobilization of the French troops in the first week of 
August is contained in a letter written to the North- 
western Christian Advocate by its editor, Elbert 
Eobb Zaring. Mr. Zaring was one of the ten mem- 
bers of the world's peace congress who sailed on the 
steamship Philadelphia to attend the conference in 
Constance, Germany, early this month. 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 31 

When the party arrived in Paris, they received the 
first news of the impending European conflict. 
Steamship ticket offices were being stormed by 
crowds of frantic American tourists. Martial law 
was declared. The streets were alive with soldiers 
and weeping women. Shops were closed, the clerks 
having been drafted into the army. The city hummed 
with militarism. 

FRENCH STERN", STOICAL 

Underneath the excitement, Mr. Zaring describes 
the stern, stoic attitude of the French in preparing 
to meet their old enemy, their courtesy toward Amer- 
icans, and their calmness in refraining from out- 
breaks against German residents of Paris. He 
praises Ambassador Herrick for his untiring efforts 
in alleviating the discomforts of American tourists. 
He alludes to the incongruous position in which the 
peace delegates found themselves. 

"Just here it might be interesting to observe the 
unique and almost humorous situation into which 
these peace delegates were thrown, ' ' Mr. Zaring says. 
"Starting out a week before with the largest hope 
and most enthusiastic anticipation of effecting a 
closer tie between nations, and swinging the churches 
of Christendom into a clearer alignment against in- 
ternational martial attitudes, we were instantly 
' disarmed,' bound, and cast into chains of utter help- 
lessness, not even feeling free to express the feeblest 
sentiment against the high rising tide of military 
activity. 



32 FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 

"We were lost on a tempestuous sea; the dove 
of peace had been beaten, broken winged, to shore, 
and the olive branch lost in the general fury." 

The conditions in Paris on August 12 are described 
as follows: "We are in a state of tense expectation, 
so acute that it dulls the senses of the population, 
and Paris is relapsing into the condition of an audi- 
ence assisting at a thrilling drama with intolerably 
long entr'actes during which it tries to think of its 
own personal affairs. 

"We know that pages of history are being rapidly 
engraved in steel, written in blood, illuminated in the 
margin with glory on a background of heroism and 
suffering, not more than a few score miles away. Yet 
it is almost as if we were at the other side of the 
world. 

"The shrieking camelots (peddlers) gallop through 
the streets waving their news sheets, but it is almost 
always news of twenty-four hours ago. Commu- 
niques are given out at 11 :30 in the morning, at 5 :30 
in the afternoon, and at 11 :30 at night, but each long 
day gives us little more than the morning papers tell 
of the events of yesterday. 

' ' The iron hand of the censor reduces the press to a 
monotonous repetition of the same formula. Only 
headlines give scope for originality. 

"Of local news, there is none. There is nothing 
doing in Paris but steady preparation for meeting 
contingencies by organizing ambulances and relief 
for the poor." 




Copyright by Underwood £ Undericood, N. Y., 1911, 

The new dirigible, "Villa De Milan," which the citizens of Milan pre- 
sented to the Italian army. It is 234 feet long and 60 feet in diameter 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 33 

The suffering of Russians leaving Germany is thus 
described: "We left Berlin on the day Germany de- 
clared war against Russia. Within seventy-five miles 
of the frontier 1,000 Russians in the train by which 
they were traveling were turned out of the carriages 
and compelled to spend eighteen hours without food 
in an open field surrounded by soldiers with fixed 
bayonets. 

"Then they were all placed in dirty cattle wagons, 
about sixty men, women, and children to a wagon, 
and for twenty-eight hours were carried about Prus- 
sia without food, drink, or privacy. In Stettin they 
were lodged in pig pens, and next morning they were 
sent off by steamer to Rugen, whence they made their 
way to Denmark and Sweden without money or lug- 
gage. Sweden provided them with food and free 
passage to the Russian frontier. 

"Five of our fellow-passengers went mad." 

An American had a touch of the stress of the times 
in the zone of war that showed the military pressure 
everywhere. 

"I had finished my business in Berlin," he says, 
"and was traveling in Bavaria when war was de- 
clared. I immediately left Nuremberg for France. 
When we reached Hassum, a German town on the 
French frontier, some German officers boarded the 
train. I happened to be talking French to a fellow- 
passenger and they overheard me. As I had a cam- 
era with me and no passports, I had a hard time of 
it. I was taken before a German general, who asked 



34 FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 

me if I were a Frenchman. I thought he asked if I 
spoke French, and therefore answered yes. I was 
arrested as being a spy. Several passengers pro- 
tested, and two of my friends were arrested as 
accomplices. 

"We were kept in jail for thirty-six hours while 
the film in my camera was being developed. To make 
matters worse, I happened to have taken several good 
pictures of some German fortresses. My papers were 
all dipped in chemicals to see if there was any secret 
writing between the lines. Finally, however, the 
authorities decided that I was a bonafide American 
tourist, and they released my friends and me. We 
weren't put across the frontier into France — we were 
thrown across." 

AMEEICANS CAUGHT IN THE CORDONS OF WAR 

American tourists to the number of 150,000 or 
more found themselves suddenly surrounded by war. 

The usual methods for obtaining money were close, 
and the means upon which they depended were 
unavailable. 

An appeal was made to the American government 
for help, and two ships were sent to Europe with 
sufficient funds for all that needed aid. 

But many were far in the interior where no help 
could be given them. The physical and mental suf- 
ferings thus brought into the presence of the horrors 
of war are described by those that have been able to 
escape from their dangerous plight. 

American tourists of wealth were in many places 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 35 

compelled to exist like tramps, some of tliem actually 
being compelled to beg for food. 

Oscar Gordon Erickson, conductor of the Sunday 
Evening Club Choir, and his wife, on arriving at 
Chicago, told of having been forced to stand up six- 
teen hours in the jammed compartment on the train 
that bore them from Berlin to the coast. In that 
time their only sustenance was a bottle of water. 

James A. Patten and wife, of Chicago, after the 
most distressful experiences, arrived home with a 
new respect for America. He said : " A man must 
beware of speaking a word of French or English in 
Germany, for he is more apt than not to receive a 
crack over the head with a well-directed blow of a 
cane. The same holds true in France, too, in regard 
to a spoken word of German, for the Frenchmen will 
accord you the same brand of treatment. You will 
at least be looked upon as a spy and escorted to a 
police station. 

"On our way to Cologne, trains were flying by us 
loaded with soldiers. Pandemonium reigned every- 
where. In the German barracks along the way the 
soldiers were singing, and a lusty shout would arise 
as our train passed them by. 

"On August 4, we caught a train for Cologne, but 
were stopped by troops and forced to get out at a 
small town on the Belgian' border named Herbesthal. 

FIRST FOOD IN THREE DAYS 

"It was raining hard, and our only shelter was a 
small saloon, where I was able to secure a bottle of 



36 FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 

beer and three slices of bread, the only food we had 
had in three days. The next morning I secured a 
wagon and horse and started for Ciers, where I 
thought I could get a train to Liege. But we did not 
get far before we had to get out. Then we hired 
another horse and cart, and we were about to start 
on when we met thousands of Germans on the road. 
" Finally we came to a road, and were about to 
turn into it when some one said, 'Don't go up that 
road, it's mined," so we had to take a roundabout 
way. We heard that three thousand Germans were 
blown up on the road the next day, and that some 
Americans who had taken the road were forced by 
the Belgians to get into a ditch while the battle was 
fought. 

SAW LIEGE SKIRMISHING 

11 When we finally got to Liege, they were skirmish- 
ing all around it, and we could hear heavy firing on 
all sides. We were told to get out at once, and we 
made Brussels the next day. Then we got to Ant- 
werp, where Minister Whitlock was distinguishing 
himself by his splendid services to the Americans 
stranded there. 

"Unable to secure food at Antwerp, we were 
forced to eat the food that the boat had carried all 
the way from New York with them." 

Virginia Harned, the actress, said: "I lost my 
baggage, lost my way several times, and lost what 
money I did have. The only thing I did not lose was 
my appetite and love for America. But my appetite 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 37 

availed me nothing in Paris. We were compelled to 
be both gnests and servants in some of the hotels. 
Several times I rustled my own breakfast in the hotel 
kitchen. I remember one woman who wore a mag- 
nificent gown coming into the kitchen and scrambling 
some eggs for herself and her husband. Ill bet she 
never did it before. Also I learned that that mag- 
nificent dress was the only one she owned. Her 
baggage was gone, too." 

AREIVAL OF THE PHILADELPHIA 

The first steamship to reach America after the 
beginning of the European Avar. A more remarkable 
crowd never arrived in New York City by steamship 
or train. There were men of millions and persons of 
most modest means who had slept side by side on the 
journey over; voyagers with balances of tens of thou- 
sands of dollars in banks and not a cent in their 
pocketbooks; men able and eager to pay any price 
for the best accommodations to be had, yet satisfied 
and happy sharing bunks in the steerage. 

There were women who had lost all their baggage 
and had come alone, their friends and relatives being 
unable to get accommodations on board the vessel. 
There were children who had come on board with 
their mothers, with neither money nor reservations, 
who were happy because they had received the very 
best treatment from all the steamship's officers and 
crew and because they had enjoyed the most comfort- 
able quarters to be had, surrendered by men who 
were content to sleep in most humble surroundings, 



38 FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 

or, if necessary, as happened in a few cases, to sleep 
on the decks when the weather permitted. 

NATIONAL ANTHEM HERALDS ARRIVAL 

The strains of the American national anthem 
echoed over the waters of the bay as the big steam- 
ship, lights gleaming from every porthole, steamed 
up the waters to Quarantine. There were outbursts 
of cheering as the handsome craft made her way 
through a lane of tugs and other craft which had 
gone down the bay to extend a welcome to the first 
party of Americans to come from the war stricken 
countries of Europe. 

As the Philadelphia glided on toward the vessel 
from the quarantine station, the soft strains of the 
American anthem swelled until, as she slowed down 
to await the coining of the physicians and customs 
officials, it rose to a great crescendo which fell upon 
the ears of all within many hundred yards and 
brought an answering chorus from the hundreds who 
waited to extend their hands to friends and relatives 
and to hear from them the first stories direct from 
the scenes of strife and to leam what had occurred 
on what every one supposed was in every way an 
eventful voyage. 

Wealthy, but without funds, many of the passen- 
gers gave jewelry to the stewards and other em- 
ployees of the steamship as the tips which they as- 
sumed were expected even in times of stress. The 
crew took them apologetically. Some of them said 
they were content to take only the thanks of the 



FIRST EXPERIENCES IN GREAT WAR 39 

passengers. One woman of wealth and social posi- 
tion, without money, and having lost her check book 
with her other baggage, as had many others of the 
passengers, gave a pair of valuable bracelets to her 
steward with the request that he give them to his 
wife. She gave a hat — the only one she managed to 
take with her on her flight from Switzerland — to her 
stewardess. 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

Reliable Descriptions Impossible Because 
of the Rigorous Censorship 

June 28 — Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir to 
the Austrian throne, and his wife, the Duchess of 
Hohenberg, assassinated by a Serb at Sarajevo, the 
capital of Bosnia. 

July 23 — Austria sends an ultimatum to Servia, 
sharply denouncing anti- Austrian propaganda. 

July 25 — Servia gives in to Austria on all points 
except participation of Austrian officers in investi- 
gation of conditions in Servia. 

July 27 — Sir Edward Grey, British foreign minis- 
ter, proposes an international conference. 

July 28 — Austria and Germany decline Sir Ed- 
ward Grey's proposal; Austria declares war on 
Servia. 

July 29 — The Austrians bombard Belgrade ; Rus- 
sia mobilizes ; preparations for war in Germany and 
France. 

July 30 — Emperor William demands that Russia 
suspend her mobilization within twenty-four hours. 

July 31 — Martial law decreed in Germany; the 




Copyright by Vndencood & Underwood, N. Y., 1911, 

Queen Wilhelm and her only daughter, who is three years old, named for 

her mother 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 41 

Kaiser, the Czar, and King George exchange tele- 
grams in an attempt to avert war. 

August 1 — Germany declares war on Russia. 

August 2 — German forces enter Luxemburg • Bel- 
gium, fearing invasion, appeals to Great Britain; 
clashes on the Franco-German and Russo-German 
frontiers. 

August 3 — British Ministry submits question of 
war to Parliament. 

August 4 — England declares a state of war with 
Germany; Germans begin attack on the forts at 
Liege ; President Wilson proclaims neutrality of the 
United States. 

August 5 — President Wilson tenders his good of- 
fices to the warring nations; German mine layer 
Koenigin Luise sunk by British. 

August 6 — British light cruiser Amphion sunk by 
mine in North Sea ; Austria declares war on Russia. 

August 7 — Germans enter Liege without reducing 
the forts ; the Kaiser issues an appeal to his people ; 
German cruisers Goeben and Breslau set out on a 
dash from San Salvatore, Sicily, to take refuge ulti- 
mately in the Dardanelles, where the Turkish gov- 
ernment takes over the ships by purchase. 

August 8 — British troops reported landing in 
French and Belgian ports; French invade southern 
Alsace and occupy Altkirch and Mulhausen; Aus- 
trian troops advance towards Basel to co-operate 
with Germans ; Montenegro declares war on Austria ; 



42 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

Portugal announces herself ally of England; Italy 
reaffirms neutrality; fighting between French and 
Germans in the Vosges. 

August 10 — The French retire from Miilhausen; 
collisions between French and Germans at Longwy, 
Longuyon, Spincourt, and other places on the 
French northeastern frontier. 

August 11 — England declares war on Austria; 
Germans penetrate into Belgium north and south of 
Liege, fighting around Tongres and St. Trond ; Ger- 
mans bombard Pon-a-Mousson, between Metz and 
Nancy. 

August 12 — German lines in Belgium extended be- 
yond the Meuse; Huy occupied by the Germans; 
sharp engagements between Germans and Belgians 
at Haelen, Diest, Tirlemont; England and France 
declare war on Austria; Russians cross Galician 
frontier. 

August 13 — Engagement at Enghezce, north of 
Namur; Dutch troops massed on frontier. 

August 14 — Junction of Belgian and French 
armies affirmed; Sir John French, British com- 
mander-in-chief, in touch with French War Office. 

August 15 — Austrians enter Servia at Lobnitza on 
the Drina River and Sabatch on the Save; Japan 
sends ultimatum to Germany, demanding the with- 
drawal of German men-of-war and the surrender of 
Kiao-chau, leased territory in North China. 

August 16 — Collision between French and Ger- 
mans at Dinant. 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 43 

A GENERAL VIEW 

In the great European war Germany took the of- 
fensive with marvelous promptness. Declaring war 
on Russia August 1, she hurled her first big armies 
against Russia's ally, France. Three lines of ad- 
vance were followed, two of which violated the neu- 
trality of other nations. The first was through Bel- 
gium, it being one hundred miles from Germany to 
France. It was evidently the plan to make a quick 
march, striking the French frontier at near Givet. 
The desperate fighting at Liege, where Germany was 
checked with heavy losses, gave France time to pre- 
pare for the invasion. The city of Liege was occu- 
pied by German troops August 7, but the forts sur- 
rounding it were reported to be continuing a des- 
perate defense. The Belgians prepared a second line 
of defense at Namur. Not only was the first army 
of invasion checked, but the others had to wait for it. 
Of these, the second advanced through Luxemburg, 
presumably to strike the French near Verdun. The 
third marched on Nancy. During the first week of 
the war skirmishing was reported from the second 
and third armies, but the only heavy fighting was 
in Belgium. 

France and England are rushing reinforcements 
to the heroic Belgians. 

France surprised Germany by an attack in force 
on Alsace, occupying Altkirch and Mulhauseu, with 
a reported loss of 15,000 men, while Germany lost 
30,000. The Kaiser immediately started for the 



44 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

front. Germany, meantime, had thrown a force into 
Finland, her first attack on Russia. 

Germany's war fleet made its base the Kiel canal, 
and Heligoland. The British fleet was within strik- 
ing distance when war was declared by England, 
August 4, and some fighting occurred between scout- 
ing vessels. 

James Bernard Fagan's poem, "The Hour," ex- 
presses the satisfaction of England over her fleet : 

"We have shut the gates of the Dover Straits, 
And north where the tide runs free, 
Cheek by jowl, our watchdogs prowl, 
Gray hulks in a grayer sea. 
And the prayer that England prays to-night 
To the lord of our destiny, 
As the foam of our plunging prow is white, 
We have stood for peace and we war for right, 
God give us victory." 

LIEGE 

Count Rudolf Ehrenberg, war correspondent for 
the London Standard and the New York Tribune, 
sent the following description on August 11, from 
Ma est rich : 

Fugitives from the German army operating 
against Liege have given me details of the advance 
into Belgium and the attack on Liege from the in- 
vaders' point of view. They belonged to a detach- 
ment which was overpowered by Belgian cavalry and 
fled into Holland to escape capture. 

They were disarmed by the Dutch soon after they 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 45 

crossed the frontier, and. I understand they intend 
to emigrate to America. They have had enough of 
compaigning and a country in which militarism is 
rampant. Here is the story of the march on Liege 
as related to me by the most intelligent one : 

"We went by train to Herbesthal, the last German 
town, the outskirts of which touch the frontier. We 
traveled in open goods trucks, and the journey was 
like a triumphal progress, everywhere acclaimed by 
the people. Old men came out to bless us, and women 
and girls passed alongside the train in stations, en- 
couraging us with kind words and more substantial 
gifts of food and drink. 

"At Herbesthal we took to the road and advanced 
into Belgian territory. On the frontier itself there 
was absolutely no resistance, though I believe a few 
stray shots were fired at our cavalry scouts who pre- 
ceded the main body. 

"After occupying the first Belgian town of Lim- 
burg, where locomotives and rolling stock were 
found, we continued our advance to Verviers, which 
was cleared of Belgian troops by our cavalry before 
our arrival. The inhabitants of Verviers watched 
our march into the town with terror, withdrawing 
into their houses and peeping from behind closed 
shutters, evidently fearing we would commit out- 
rages. 

SEIZED THE WHOLE TOWN" 

"Nothing of the kind happened, and we marched 
to the offices of the municipality and tore down the 



46 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

Belgian flag, which was replaced by a German flag 
amid the cheers of our men. A proclamation of the 
annexation of Verviers and the district was read in 
French outside the town hall and posted in all parts 
of the place. Martial law was proclaimed and the 
residents were warned that any resistance to the Ger- 
man military authorities would be punished by sum- 
mary execution. 

"A German officer took over the administration of 
the town and began by requisitioning food and other 
supplies and various kinds of subsistence for the 
German troops. His orders were carried out meekly, 
even zealously, by the citizens of Verviers, who told 
some of our men quartered in the houses that they 
had received instructions from Brussels to offer no 
opposition. 

"Among the regulations enforced was one com- 
pelling the townspeople to be within doors by sunset 
and not leave their houses before sunrise. They were 
forced to find quarters for our men and hand over 
the bread from the bakeries, which were kept work- 
ing day and night; also to yield stored meats, gro- 
ceries, and eatables of all kinds to such an extent that 
the Belgians themselves were left in a sorry plight. 
Any kind of violence against the civilian inhabitants 
was strictly prohibited, except when w r e were at- 
tacked. Then we had orders to shoot without hesi- 
tation in self-defense. 

"After a few hours the Belgians got over the first 
fright and fraternized with the invaders as far as 
possible with a difference of languages. Then fol- 



EARLY STAGES OP THE WAR 47 

lowed with astonishing rapidity the advance to Liege, 
the first part of the journey being done by train, but 
not far. 

"The retreating Belgians soon began to tear up 
the permanent way, so we had to take to the road 
again and march. The use of the railway to and 
beyond Verviers caused our sudden appearance be- 
fore Liege. 

WOUNDS WORSE THAN DEATH 

"Then we went through days of horror. I took 
part in the earlier attacks on the Belgians defending 
Liege, and, though I am not a coward, the sights I 
saw and the wholesale slaughter of our men filled me 
with dread. Again and again we advanced, always 
in close formation, lying and shooting at an elevation 
given us by officers, running forward and dropping 
again on our stomachs, continuing to fire and advanc- 
ing once more, always nearer, nearer to the lines of 
our enemy. 

"As we pressed forward, our ranks became thin- 
ner and thinner. Shells burst among us, killing and 
wounding, and such wounds were far worse than 
death itself, while the rifle fire of the Belgians mowed 
down our men in dozens, scores, hundreds. 

"Have you ever been under fire, ever pushed for- 
ward against the invisible enemy, with comrades 
dropping either dead or mutilated all around you? 
Ever seen the effect of modern artillery trained on 
masses of human beings? Ever seen heaps of dead 
and heaps of wounded all mixed together? Ever 



48 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

heard the cries of fallen soldiers you were obliged 
to leave to their sufferings in order to continue the 
battle? If not, you cannot imagine what we went 
through at Liege. Some of our attacks were by day 
and others by night. 

"Our officers, reckless in their bravery, led us, 
urged us, encouraged us to throw away our lives. I 
think there was much unnecessary bloodshed. We 
marched straight at the enemy's lines and towards 
the mouths of hostile artillery as if on maneuver in 
a field with sham opponents. It was magnificent, 
but not war as war should be conducted in this age 
with more destructive weapons. 

"If there were moments when we broke and ran, 
it w T as because a farther advance into the jaws of 
death was a sheer impossibility. After the first as- 
saults, with their disastrous endings, the spirit of the 
attackers was broken. Deep depression followed the 
buoyant charge with which we marched into the 
enemy's country. The lack of enthusiasm spread 
through all the ranks and retarded success, yet with 
relentless discipline we were required to hurl our- 
selves repeatedly at lines which seemed unbreakable. 

FRESH TEOOPS TO SLAUGHTER 

"Then, when only a fraction of our regiment sur- 
vived, we moved to a different part of the battlefield, 
while fresh troops were brought up to go through 
the same course of action. It was common talk 
among our men that hundreds of wounded were left 
for hours without any kind of adequate attention, 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 49 

for the simple reason it was impossible to reach them 
without almost certain death. 

" Their sufferings were heartrending beyond the 
powers of description, and there were sights and 
sounds that even amid the din of battle shook our 
nerves and struck terror to our hearts. The bravest 
of men may well be full of fear on a modern battle- 
field." 

The young German who told me this tale of war 
was well educated and refined, a conscript from a 
middle class family. His companions had similar 
things to relate. All agreed the courage of the Ger- 
man rank and file was superhuman, and they were 
needlessly exposed to a hostile fire when different 
tactics would have diminished the sacrifice of life. 

DEAD BURNED IN HEAPS 

The wholesale cremation of bodies of German sol- 
diers killed in the fighting before Liege also was 
described by the German fugitives who have crossed 
the frontier into Holland. During two or three suc- 
cessive nights after the fearful carnage around the 
forts of Liege the Germans collected their dead and 
piled them in heaps of twenty or thirty each. 

Officers explained to the men that it was necessary 
to burn the bodies in order to prevent them becoming 
a menace to the living, and that there was nothing 
disrespectful to those who had died for their country 
in thus disposing of their remains. A short funeral 
service was conducted over each heap, and military 
salutes were given by firing parties. 



50 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

In cases where the dead were lying too close to the 
Belgian forts for this process, the bodies were 
dragged under cover of darkness and pitched into 
the River Meuse, to float seaward. 

Stephen Phillips has expressed the English senti- 
ment concerning Liege in the following poem : 

He said : ' ' Thou petty people, let me pass ! 

What can 'st thou do but bow to me and kneel ! ' ' 
But sudden a dry land caught fire like grass 

And answer hurtled but from shell and steel. 

He looked for silence, but a thunder came 

Upon him from Liege a leaden hail. 
All Belgium flew up at his throat in flame, 

Till at her gates amazed his legions quail. 

Take heed, for now on haunted ground they tread ; 

There bowed a mightier war lord to his fall. 
Fear . . . lest that very grass again grow red 

With blood of German now as then with Gaul, 

If him whom God destroys he maddens first, 
Then thy destruction slake thy madman's thirst. 

HOW THEY DIED AT HAELE^" 

Few can comprehend, even vaguely, all the horror 
of what is going on. This is from the fight at Haelen, 
Thursday, August 13: 

"As one row was mowed down another took its 
place from behind. * * * The Herck-Haelen road 
presented the sight of a veritable hecatomb. * * * 
They met a veritable butchery. Men and horses fell 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 51 

like so many flies, until the force was decimated and 
orders given them to withdraw." 

Charles Dickens pictured war thus: 

' ' There will be the full complement of backs broken 
in two, of arms twisted wholly off, of men impaled 
upon their bayonets, of legs smashed up like bits of 
firewood, of heads sliced open like apples, of other 
heads crunched into soft jelly by the iron hoofs of 
horses, of faces trampled out of all likeness to any- 
thing human. This is what skulks behind ' a splendid 
charge.' This is what follows, as a matter of course, 
when our fellows ride at them in style and cut them 
up famously." 

And in this the twentieth century, age of civiliza- 
tion, ''men and horses fell like so many flies." 

And all for what? 

WAR CORRESPONDENT FINDS A LETTER 

A letter which I picked up on the field and am 
endeavoring to have identified and sent to her for 
whom it is intended will speak for all. It is written 
in ink on half a sheet of thin note paper. There is 
no date and no place. Probably it was written on 
the eve of battle, in the hope that it would reach its 
destination if the writer died. This is the transla- 
tion : 

"Sweetheart (Chere Amie) : Fate in this present 
war has treated us more cruelly than many others. 
If I have not lived to create for you the happiness 
of which both our hearts dreamed, remember my sole 



52 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

wish is that now you should be happy. Forget me. 
Create for yourself some happy home that may re- 
store to you some of the greater pleasures of life. 

"For myself, I shall have died happy in the 
thought of your love. My last thought has been for 
you and for those I leave at home. Accept this, the 
last kiss from him Avho loved you. ' ' 

The signature, I think, is "Detienn," and on the 
back is a postscript saying that if his photographs 
should cause her unhappiness she should return them 
to his parents. 

In the matter of treatment of war prisoners as 
well as defense, Belgium is setting a splendid ex- 
ample. The soldiers feel that they can afford to show 
humanity toward- even les barhares. 

Most of the prisoners came from Liege, though 
some had been taken in outpost skirmishes, and more 
were expected from Diest. 

Those who had arrived first had their sleep out 
when I visited the caserne. They were eager for 
news, and some were anxious to tell me what they 
thought of it all. 

INITIATIVE DRILLED OUT OF THEM 

Only a few, however, would describe their capture. 
They were ashamed, but I am certain that every one 
was a man of courage. Their surrender was no fault 
of theirs; it was the fault of the German system 
which was to beat the world. 

They had all been goose-stepped and drilled for 
years ; they were trained soldiers, most of them third- 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 53 

year men on the active list ; but their capture in every 
case was due to the fact that they had been drilled 
out of all independence. 

PICTURE OF THE BATTLE AT DIEST 

The advance of the German cavalry was covered 
by a heavy artillery fire, to which the Belgian guns, 
advantageously posted, replied, causing considerable 
loss to the invaders. 

A force consisting of dragoons, two field guns and 
four machine guns made a bold dash upon Diest, 
hoping no doubt to surprise the town. They would 
probably have succeeded but for the splendid bravery 
of the military, assisted by the civil guards. 

A German column advancing at full gallop reached 
a small village about a mile and a half from Diest. 
Here had been erected a barricade of farm wagons, 
while the road immediately in front had been torn 
up, making any advance of cavalry impossible. Be- 
hind this hasty fortification a mixed force of Bel- 
gians with machine guns was intrenched and a mur- 
derous fire was opened on the Prussian dragoons, 
who, being absolutely without cover of any kind, were 
speedily decimated under the rain of Belgian bullets. 

The surviving Germans, be it said, fought witli 
great bravery. They intrenched themselves behind 
a rampart of dead horses and dead comrades. They 
fought with desperate courage, as will men who are 
driven to bay and are selling their lives as dearly as 
possible. 

The Belgians, believing the enemy's resistance was 



54 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

at end, impulsively pushed from behind their barri- 
cades and were immediately subjected to a hot fire, 
which occasioned some losses. However, a field gun 
was brought up and trained on the enemy behind 
their carcasses and corpses, and in a few minutes all 
the other surviving Germans were killed or wounded 
or put to flight. 

EXHAUSTED HOUSES DROr DEAD 

Eight wounded cavalrymen attempted escape, but 
their already exhausted horses were unable to take 
them quickly enough out of the range of the bullets, 
and they were speedily shot down. This last phase 
of the fight was a veritable massacre. Some wounded 
cavalry horses, mad with pain and terror, and with- 
out riders to guide them, dashed upon the barricade 
and crashed through the obstacle which had proved 
so fatal to many of the Kaiser's soldiers. 

Of the survivors of this sanguinary encounter, 
four officers and two men were taken prisoners. The 
other column, unable to force its way into Haelen, 
subsequently retired in great confusion, leaving be- 
hind many dead and wounded and prisoners. 

Several of the enemy, finding themselves sur- 
rounded and subjected to a merciless fire, threw down 
their arms and surrendered. The retreat of the 
escaped from death or capture was a terrible spec- 
tacle. Spent, half-starved horses had bravely, 
mutely made their last efforts, and under the pres- 
sure of renewed exertion dropped dead on the 
roadway. 



EAELY STAGES OF THE WAR 55 

The German line of retreat was punctuated by 
carcasses of horses which had succumbed to their 
exhaustion. Some of their riders who had escaped 
scatheless from the fight also collapsed by the road- 
side, and were so incapable of physical resistance 
that when taken by Belgian patrols as prisoners they 
were unable to walk to Diest. 

Many German prisoners declared they had eaten 
no food for twenty-four hours. Veterinary surgeons 
with the Belgian forces who made autopsies on some 
horses declared the poor brutes could not have had 
any forage for three days. 

TO EUROPE 

Beat back thy forfeit plowshares into swords ; 

It is not yet the far, seraphic Dream 

Of peace made beautiful and love supreme. 
For now the strong, unweariable chords 
Of battle shake to thunder, and the hordes 

Advance, where now the circling vultures scream. 

The standards gather and the trumpets gleam ; 
Down the long hillside stare the mounted lords. 

Now far beyond the tumult and the hate 
The white-clad nurses and the surgeons wait 

The backward currents of tormented life, 
When on the waiting silences shall come 
The screams of men, and, ere those lips are dumb, 

The searching probe, the ligature and knife. 

Was it for such, the brutehood and the pain, 
Civilization gave her holy fire 
Unto thy wardship, and the snowy spire 

Of her august and most exalted fane? 



56 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

Are these the harvests of her ancient rain 
Men glean at evening in the scarlet mire, 
Or where the mountain smokes, a dreadful pyre, 

Or where the warship drags a bloody stain? 

Are these thy votive lilies and their dews, 

That now the outraged stars look down to see? 
Behold them, where the cold, prophetic damps 
Congeal on youthful brows so soon to lose 
Their dream of sacrifice to thee — to thee, 
Harlot to Murder in a thousand camps! 

"Was it for this that loving men and true 
Have labored in the darkness and the light 
To rear the solemn temple of the Right 

On Reason's deep foundations, bared anew 

Long after the Caesarian eagles flew 

And Rome's last thunder died upon the Night? 
Cuirassed, the cannon menace from the height ; 

Armored, the new-born eagles take the blue. 

Wait not, thy lords, the avenging, certain knell — 

One with the captains and abhorrent fames 
The echoes of whose conquests died in Hell? — 
They that have loosened the ensanguined flood, 
And whose malign and execrable names 
The Angel of the Record writes in blood. 

— George Stirling in The World Magazine. 

WAR IN ALSACE — A GLIMPSE AFTER THE BATTLE IS ALL 
THE WORLD KNOWS 

The London Standard's correspondent at Basel, 
under date August 19, gives the following descrip- 
tion of what he has observed in southern Alsace, 
where the French and Germans have been fighting 
vigorously for the last ten days : 




Copyright by Underwood <C- Underwood, N. Y., 1914 

The portable and collapsible tower which is being used with great 
success by the German army for taking observations and locating the 
position of the enemy. The tower is mounted on a truck, and when not 
in use, collapses 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 57 

"I have just returned from an inspection of the 
scene of the recent fighting between the French and 
German armies in the southern districts of Alsace. 
The dispatches from Paris and Berlin all describe 
the engagements that have taken place between the 
French frontier and Mulhausen as insignificant en- 
counters between advance guards. 

"If this be true in a military sense, and the pre- 
liminaries of war produce the terrible results that I 
have just witnessed, then the disastrous effects of 
the entire war itself will exceed the possibilities of 
human comprehension. 

TBIP OF FIVE ON BICYCLES 

"I started out equipped with identification papers 
as a Swiss citizen and was accompanied by four other 
Swiss, all of us mounted on bicycles. At the outset 
of our expedition the sight of the peasants, men and 
women, working unconcernedly in the fields, gather- 
ing the harvest, struck me as unnaturally strange. 
The men were well advanced in life, and everywhere 
we saw women, from girls to aged and infirm grand- 
mothers, working side by side with these old men and 
little boys. 

"The first sign of the w T ar that caught our atten- 
tion w T as the demolished home of a Roman Catholic 
priest in a village near Ransbach. 

''This priest had lived there for many years and 
was engaged in literary pursuits and religious work. 
On the outbreak of the war the German authorities 
jumped to the conclusion that the old priest was a 



58 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

French secret agent and that he had been sending 
regularly • to Belf ort information concerning the 
German military movements and the preparations 
for defending Alsace against a French invasion. 
They said he had often used carrier pigeons as a 
means of communication in this work. 

SHOT DOWN AS A SPY 

"The Alsatian residents declared that these accu- 
sations were unjust; but last week a military party 
raided the priest's house, dragged him from his study, 
stood him up against his own garden wall, and shot 
him down summarily as a traitor and spy. 

"Then the whole house was searched from top to 
bottom and numerous books and papers removed 
from it, whereupon the building was set afire and 
destroyed with dynamite. The priest himself was 
buried, coffinless, at the end of his cherished little 
garden plot, where some of his grieving parishioners 
have since placed a rough wooden cross to mark his 
mound. 

"On our next stop, at a little village, we were told 
that it had been successively occupied by the French 
and the Germans and had been the scene of much 
stiff infantry fighting. Every day, in the broiling 
sun, we were told, the opposing forces fought for 
ten or twelve hours. 

SEARCH FOR DEAD IN CORN 

"A little farther we came to where a number of 
German soldiers were beating about the standing 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 59 

crops in fields on both sides of the main road. They 
were searching for their dead and wounded, and told 
us that a number of their injured comrades had 
crawled in among the high corn to escape being trod- 
den down by the troops that were marching along 
the road and to gain some shelter from the pitiless 
sun. 

' ' On the outskirts of another village we were 
shown a garden bound by a thick hedge, behind which 
a company of French infantry had taken a stand 
against the advancing German troops. Among the 
crushed and trodden flowers there were still lying 
many fragments of French equipment, such as two 
French soldiers 7 caps, stained with blood; three torn 
French tunics, likewise dyed red. The walls of a 
cottage bore the marks of rifle bullets, and its roof 
had been partly burned. 

SIGNS OF WAR'S EFFECTS 

"Passing through other villages, we saw on all 
sides terrible signs of the devastation of war ; houses 
burned down, the uncut corn trodden down and ren- 
dered useless, gardens trampled under foot, and 
everywhere distress. 

"At a small village, locally known as Napoleon's 
Island, we found the railway station demolished and 
a line of trucks which the French had used as a 
barricade. These trucks were almost shot to pieces, 
and many were stained with blood. Outside the sta- 
tion the roof of a small restaurant had been shot 
away, the windows smashed, and the furniture de- 



60 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

stroyed. Nevertheless, the proprietor had rear- 
ranged his damaged premises as well as possible and 
was serving customers as if nothing had occurred. 
"Just outside this village there was a large com- 
mon grave in which both French and German sol- 
diers had been buried together, in their uniforms. A 
large mound marked the site, and here again the 
villagers had placed roughly hewn crosses. 

ALSATIAN PEASANT'S STORY 

"Not far from Huningen we met an intelligent 
Alsatian peasant who remembered the war of 1870 
and had witnessed some engagements during the last 
few days. Here is an account of what he saw, in his 
own words : 

' ' ' The bravery on both sides was amazing ; the 
effects of the artillery lire were terrific; the shells 
burst, and where you had formerly seen a body of 
soldiers you saw only corpses or a number of figures 
writhing on the ground, torn and mutilated by the 
fragments of the shells. 

"'Those who escaped unhurt scattered quickly, 
but soon they regained their composure and took up 
their positions on the fighting line as if nothing had 
happened. It seems remarkable that soldiers can 
see destruction worked all around them yet can con- 
trol their nerves sufficiently to continue fighting. 

" ' 1 remember battles in 1870, five or six of which 
I fought in myself , but they were no comparison with 
the battles of 1914. The war forty-four years ago 
was child's play compared with the present war.' 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR CI 

"In several villages the schools, churches, and 
many cottages are filled with wounded French and 
German soldiers. Everything is being done to re- 
lieve their sufferings. 

WOUNDED LEFT IN THE ROADS' 

"In the stress of fighting many wounded soldiers 
are left from three to ten or even twelve hours lying- 
in the fields or on the roads. The ambulance equip- 
ment of modern armies appears utterly inadequate, 
and most of the wounded are picked up by villagers. 

"I saw a French aeroplane coming from Belfort, 
reconnoitering the German positions behind Mul- 
hausen. As it passed over the German fortified posi- 
tions at Isteinklotz there ensued much firing from 
machine guns and rifles. The aeroplane, which 
swerved downward, gave the two occupants a closer 
and clearer view of the German position and imme- 
diately rose to a much greater altitude, escaping 
attack. 

' ' This aerial reconnoisance, carried out in part at 
an altitude as low as 1,000 feet, was undertaken at 
great personal risk, but the aeroplane escaped all 
injury and returned in the direction of Belfort, 
doubtless with all the information it set out to 
collect. ' ■ 

CAPTURE OF THE CAPITAL OF BELGIUM 

Brussels, which since 1831 has been the Belgian 
capital, was occupied by the Germans, August 21. 



62 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

King Albert arrived in Antwerp the same day and 
established the government there. 

The Belgian army, which by its brave resistance 
delayed the operations of the Kaiser's army, fell 
back upon Antwerp, where it makes its final stand. 

The first German troops that entered Brussels 
were three regiments of Uhlans. By order of the 
burgomaster, no resistance was offered. The last of 
the Belgian troops had withdrawn several hours 
before the advance troops of the German army 
appeared. 

BURGOMASTER APPEALS TO CITY NOT TO GIVE THE 
INVADERS AIL) 

Before the occupation of the city by the Germans, 
the burgomaster, anticipating the German invasion, 
issued these instructions to the citizens : 

"The communal authorities will not desert their 
posts. The laws of war forbid that the enemy shall 
force the population to give any information regard- 
ing the national army and its powers of resistance. 
The inhabitants of Brussels know that they will be 
right in refusing to let the invaders know anything 
whatever on this subject. 

' ' Such a refusal is imposed upon them in the inter- 
ests of the country. Let none of you accept service 
as a guide to the enemy. Let all of you be on your 
guard against spies and foreign agents who might 
seek to gather information or to provoke manifes- 
tations. 

"The enemy cannot do anything against the honor 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 63 

of families, the life of citizens, or private property, 
or against the religious convictions and free exercise 
of worship. 

"Let any abuses committed by the invader be 
brought to my attention immediately. As long as 
I am alive and at liberty I will protect with all my 
strength the rights and dignities of my fellow citizens. 

"I beg the inhabitants to facilitate my task by 
abstaining from intervention in the fighting. 

"Fellow citizens, whatever happens, listen to the 
voice of your burgomaster and support and maintain 
him." 

THE WAR INDEMNITY 

The first official act of the invaders was to levy a 
war indemnity tax of $55 a head for every man, 
woman, and child in the city, though international 
arbitration, of which Germany is one of the signers, 
agrees that no war tax shall ever exceed the imme- 
diate needs of the invaders. 

The total amount levied was forty million dollars 
for Brussels, ten millions for the province of Liege, 
and two millions for the city. 

The English and French protested against this 
levy and called upon the neutral nations to protect 
the inviolability of international law. 

DESCRIPTION OF THE OCCUPATION OF BRUSSELS 

Brussels is occupied by German troops, and all is 
quiet. About 6 o'clock this morning the Garde Ci- 
vique, singing the "Brabanconne" and the "Mar- 



64 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

seillaise," marched from the outposts and the barri- 
cades, which they built some days ago, to the Gare 
du Nord and piled their arms along the route. The 
early crowds, and they were large, for every one slept 
lightly throughout the night, cheered them whole- 
heartedly. 

These men laid down their arms as bravely as many 
have carried theirs to battle. It is not easy to have 
courage to obey and let the invaders in without a 
struggle. The boy scouts, too, who for the past three 
weeks have worn their uniforms by day and possibly 
by night, dressed once again in their civilian clothes. 

The railroad station closed at 8 o'clock, and since 
then there have been no trains either in or out of 
Brussels. The city waited quietly, and then, a little 
after midday j the cry passed from the streets beside 
the Louvain gate through the city, "lis sont la" — 
"They are there." The Uhlans had arrived. 

M. Max, the burgomaster, had an interview with 
their commandant, and told him that the city would 
surrender peacefully to a superior force. With the 
burgomaster was the American minister, Brand 
Whitlock, who went on an official mission to say on 
behalf of his government that the United States de- 
sired to take the city of Brussels under its protection. 

The authorities at Washington, however, have 
denied knowledge of any such mission or offer on the 
part of the United States. 

The strangeness of human nature was never better 
exemplified than in the behavior of the Brussels folk. 
Charged with extraordinary excitement for days, 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 65 

they became suddenly calm when the fact was estab- 
lished that the Germans were really in their midst. 
The great majority sought the shelter of their homes 
and drew down the blinds, while the shops and hotels 
shut up as if by magic. 

JAPS MOVE ON CHINA 

Dispatches from the far East, dated August 22, 
state that the Japanese fleet already is concentrating 
for the bombardment of Tsing-tau, the port of Kiau- 
chau, and that transports conveying a Japanese army 
of 50,000 or more men are nearing the Shantung pen- 
insula to accomplish the land attack. 

Tsing-tau is formidably fortified; particularly on 
the water approaches, and the Japanese admit that 
capture of the possession will be difficult, and then 
only after a protracted siege. The garrison of 5,000 
German soldiers and the noncombatant residents are 
provided with food sufficient for a year, it is stated. 

LAND FOKCES BELIED ON 

Naval experts express doubts that the Japanese 
vessels of war will be successful in a bombardment 
of Tsing-tau and say that the better chance of attack 
lies on the land side. 

There is a supposedly neutral strip of territory 
separating Kiau-chau from China, which, according 
to the Japanese, the Germans have fortified in vio- 
lation of the terms of the lease. Because of this 
illegal fortification, say the Japanese, they probably 



66 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

will be compelled to land their army upon Chinese 
territory for the investment of the German colony. 
They express the hope that China will not regard 
this as an unfriendly act, particularly as it is the 
intention of Japan to restore Kiau-chau to the 
oriental republic. 

JAP CRUISERS SCOUR SEA 

While the Japanese sea and land forces are con- 
verging on Kiau-chau, Japanese battle craft also are 
scouring the Pacific for German cruisers. One or 
two of the German vessels are in or near American 
waters, where battles are likely to occur unless the 
Germans should seek internment in United States or 
other ports. 

Several German cruisers and one Austrian have 
taken refuge in the harbor of Tsing-tau. The pres- 
ence of the Austrian cruiser in the besieged terri- 
tory may produce war between Japan and the dual 
monarchy. 

It is assumed here that in the absence of a reply 
to the Japanese ultimatum the Mikado's representa- 
tive in Berlin by this time has formally transferred 
the care of his government's interests at the German 
capital to Mr. Gerard, the American ambassador. 

DEFENSES REINFORCED 

The Japanese officials know that the entire forti- 
fications of the German concession have been rein- 
forced. Coolies have been working night and day for 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 67 

a month strengthening every point. Additional guns 
have been mounted, and there is no doubt here that 
the channel to the harbor has been mined. 

The Germans are expected to put up a desperate 
resistance both by land and by sea. The German 
war fleet in the Orient has been getting ready in the 
harbor for the last week. Ever since the ultimatum 
was served the cruisers have been preparing for ac- 
tion, and, although far outnumbered, are expected to 
attempt a raid on the Japanese the moment the latter 
open hostilities. The defenders are expecting defeat 
only at desperate cost to the enemy. 

SWISS ARMY MOBILIZED MERELY AS PRECAUTION 

Washington, Aug. 22. — At the Swiss legation here 
the following statement was made public today : 

"The Swiss federal council has mobilized, from 
the beginning, the whole military force of Switzer- 
land, the elite, the landwehr, and part of the lund- 
sturm, numbering together about 300,000 men. The 
mobilization is not a result of a menace to Switzer- 
land, but merely a precautionary military measure. 
The efficient training of the army and the careful 
war preparations enable Switzerland to maintain the 
inviolability of its territory. 

"As commander-in-chief of the army was elected 
Colonel IJlrich Wille, rising to the rank of general. 
Colonel Sprecher von Berneck is chief of staff. Both 
names are very popular in Switzerland and neighbor- 
ing countries, and inspire the troops with highest 
confidence. 



68 EARLY STAGES OP THE WAR 

PASSES STRONGLY GUARDED 

"The mobilization was completed quietly and 
speedily. The frontiers, the Alpine passes, as well 
as the Gotthard and St. Maurice fortifications, are 
strongly guarded. The German railway station at 
Basel is barred. Railroad traffic between Germany 
and Basel has ceased, and all trains are stopped in 
the German stations outside Basel. The Swiss- 
German boundary there is sharply guarded on both 
sides. Some German patrols which crossed the 
boundary line were immediately disarmed and in- 
terned. 

"The financial situation is entirely satisfactory, 
panics and withdrawals of money from banks and 
savings institutions having ceased. New bank notes 
of twenty and five francs were issued to preserve the 
metal reserves. 

ASSISTING THE AMERICANS 

"All foreigners who escaped into Switzerland are 
well cared for there. The authorities are assisting 
the fifteen thousand stranded Americans by organiz- 
ing sjDecial trains to ports of embarkation. The sup- 
plies of foodstuffs, principally grain and meat, are 
satisfactory. In milk and cheese, Switzerland pos- 
sesses, moreover, a formidable food reserve. The 
city population and nonmobilized students are help- 
ing farmers to harvest the crops." 

Switzerland is the one oasis in the desperate 
region of human misery. 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 69 

WAR AS SEEN FROM HOLLAND 

Rosendaal, Holland, Aug. 22. — The German army 
that in three days has overrun Belgium from Liege 
to the sea is stronger than the allies imagined. 

The advancing German army is accompanied by 
heavy artillery carried upon motor trucks. Although 
the Belgians had stretched barbed wire across the 
roads and had dug trenches to retard the progress of 
the invaders, the Kaiser's troops have been able to 
make rapid progress where their march was not 
opposed by armed troops. 

There is a heavy concentration movement in prog- 
ress among the German troops along the Meuse near 
Namur. Military men believe that it is the intention 
of the German general staff to try to push this army 
through the lines of the allies at that point to join 
the northern army on French soil. Terrific fighting 
will doubtless mark such attempt, for all the indi- 
cations point to a vast French army, fortified and 
equipped with artillery, along the border of southern 
Belgium. In case of defeat the deciding battles will 
be fought before French fortifications. 

Among the war experts who have been following 
the operations in Belgium there are some who believe 
that the three following issues are involved in the 
German movements : 

The left flank of the allies must either give battle 
or fall back ; the Germans may try a flank movement 
in an effort to get behind the left wing of the allied 
army, or the allies may move forward in an offensive 



70 EAELY STAGES OF THE WAR 

campaign to check the advance of the Kaiser's 
troops. 

Abbe Francois Dierchu, vicar of St. Joseph's 
church in Louvain, was one of the last to flee from 
that city before it was occupied by the Germans. 

"I was aroused from sleep at daybreak by the be- 
ginning of the bombardment," said Abbe Francois. 
"I hastily dressed and fled into the street. I asked a 
civil guardsman if the attack had begun. He replied : 

" 'Yes, the Germans have commenced to shell our 
lines.' The cannonade grew heavier. The dreadful 
roar grew in volume and the rumble of the earth 
increased until all were terrified. I was told that 
Tirlemont had been burned by the Germans and that 
they would undoubtedly put the torch to Louvain. 
I left on the last refugee train." 

Pitiful scenes were witnessed among the refugee 
bands, the members of which were fleeing from their 
homes and from scenes endeared by long association 
and ties of childhood. 

RUSSIAN ADVANCE INTO GERMANY AND AUSTRIA 

London, Aug. 22. — St. Petersburg dispatches to- 
day declared the Russian army of invasion is contin- 
uing to progress into Germany and Austria without 
interruption. 

A dispatch to the Exchange Telegraph Company 
from St. Petersburg says: "It is officially announced 
that the Russian army is advancing along the entire 
Austro-German frontier and maintaining the offen- 
sive at every point of contact." 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 71 

The St. Petersburg correspondent of the Daily 
Mail says: 

"According to information from a high source, 
the retreat of the Germans reported yesterday was 
marked by brilliant Russian cavalry exploits. Guard 
regiments hurled themselves with irresistible fury on 
the foe. The third squadron of horse guards cap- 
tured a hostile battery. " 

In a dispatch from St. Petersburg, the correspond- 
ent of the Renter Telegraph Company says the Rus- 
sian general advance, both on Austria and Germany, 
is progressing without interruption. 

According to the same information, the Austrians 
in Galicia have been defeated with heavy losses. Six 
officers and 1,250 men were taken prisoners. 

St. Petersburg, Aug. 23. — Steady invasion of Aus- 
tria is proceeding, the Russian general staff an- 
nounced today. It was stated that heavy Russian 
forces had crossed the Sbrutch River on August 20 
and that they were making a satisfactory advance. 

Russian aviators, the general staff's statement also 
said, are active in East Prussia, dropping bombs on 
German defenses. 

As to the operations in the Gumbinnen district of 
East Prussia, the general staff says: 

"The Russians still maintain the offensive. The 
fighting which had been in progress there was re- 
sumed on Thursday and has continued since, with 
success for the Russian arms. Our cavalry captured 
at least two guns. Fourteen German infantry regi- 
ments with heavy guns are engaged." 



72 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

A big cavalry engagement of the northern army on 
Friday was a severe blow to the Germans in East 
Prussia. An entire German battery was captured. 
Aviators are throwing bombs on the German in- 
trenchments and military buildings. 

A dispatch from Antwerp says the Russian minis- 
ter has been advised that in an encounter in Prussia 
the Russians took many German prisoners and cap- 
tured an entire battery of guns. 

AIRCRAFT EPISODES 

French and German aeroplanes have demonstrated 
the efficacy of aerial craft in reconnoitering and re- 
vealing where the enemy stands in force, obviating 
largely the necessity of cavalry reconnoisance and at 
the same time rendering useless to a great extent the 
employment of heavy cavalry screens. 

In the Woere region a German and a French aero- 
plane met in mid-air. The French officer with the 
pilot opened fire on the German with a rifle and then 
with a revolver, but the German escaped. Another 
German aeroplane flying over the French lines in the 
same neighborhood was hit by a cannon shot when 
at a height of a thousand meters. The motor was 
smashed by the shot, but the two German officers 
were able to effect a safe landing, but were captured. 

Another German aviator flew over the French posi- 
tion, dropping three bombs without injuring anyone. 

At Douillon a German aeroplane was brought to 
the ground by rifle fire and the pilot and officer ac- 




m 



+* o 



o <u g 





Copyright by Underwood <£- Underwood, N. Y., 1911, 

German signal corps cutting telegraphic communication 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 73 

companying him, who was wounded, were made 
prisoners. 

A Reuter dispatch from Amsterdam. August 19, 
says: 

" There is great activity among the German air- 
craft over Holland and along the Belgian frontier. 
A dirigible, probably a Zeppelin, was seen last night 
coming from the frontier and following the course of 
the Rhine. It was equipped with strong searchlights, 
which were played constantly. 

"The Dutch soldiers immediately opened fire on 
the Zeppelin, which wheeled and safely crossed the 
German frontier. 

"On Thursday night an aeroplane was seen over 
Beetl, which, after scouting evolutions, returned to 
Germany. 

"At Maestricht last night an aeroplane equipped 
with blazing searchlights appeared, following the 
road to Meeren, and disappeared in the direction of 
Germany." 

A war correspondent from the front writes : 

"Early on the morning of the 18th I saw an aero- 
plane downed by artillery fire. It was flying over 
the fortifications of the allies at a low altitude, be- 
cause of a thick fog that made it difficult for the 
German aerial scout to see. A French sentry saw 
the aeroplane and gave the alarm by firing his rifle 
at it. 

"The infantrymen fired a volley at the aviator, 
but he was not hit. He took his machine skyward 
to get out of range, and finally disappeared in the 



74 EABLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

fog. A short time afterward the guns in the fort 
opened, and we knew that the daring airman had 
been sighted again and that his machine was the 
object of the cannonade. 

"I went forward to a position where I conld see 
the aviator. He was wheeling his machine in lazy 
sweeps, like a huge bird, and I thought he would 
escape. The cannon fire was incessant. Suddenly 
the aeroplane lurched forward and dropped with 
sickening swiftness. ■ ' 

Adolphe Pegoud, the noted French aviator, who 
was the first to loop the loop high in the air, returned 
August 20 to Paris from the war zone to get a new 
aeroplane. According to a Paris dispatch to the 
Exchange Telegraph Company, the wings of Pe- 
goud 's old machine were riddled by ninety-seven 
bullets and two shells when he made with a military 
observer a flight of 186 miles into German territory. 

Pegoud could not say just where he had been, ex- 
cept that he recrossed the Rhine and blew up by 
means of bombs two German convoys. 

Captain Finck, a military aviator, Pegoud said, 
had destroyed a hangar near Metz and wrecked a 
Zeppelin, and had also destroyed three tube aero- 
planes which were in the hangar. 

WATCH FOR AIR MESSAGES 

An official notification issued August 20 to the 
people of England requests them to be watchful for 
messages dropped from aeroplanes, describes the 
peculiar wrappings which will inclose messages, and 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 75 

instructs the finders to forward them immediately to 
the addresses they bear. 

French aeroplanes scattered messages to the inhab- 
itants of Alsace in the early days of the war, and the 
Russians adopted the same method for announcing 
the proclamation of Emperor Nicholas to the Poles. 

Nish, Servia, Aug. 22. — The following announce- 
ment concerning the victory of the Servian troops 
over the Austrians was made here today : 

"The Servian army has gained a great victory at 
Mount Pzer and the Eiver Zaclar. The enemy re- 
tired along the whole front. Our troops pursued 
them vigorously. The enemy suffered enormous loss ; 
the booty was very great. 

"Yesterday the Servians continued pursuing the 
Austrians' left wing toward the Drina and captured 
two more cannon. The Austrian attacks on the Ser- 
vians' left wing were repulsed, the enemy retiring, 
pursued by a strong Servian artillery fire. On the 
northern front there is only a feeble bombardment of 
Belgrade. 

"The Servian artillery has destroyed three Aus- 
trian steamships and three barges near Stara." 

ENTIRE REGIMENTS WIPED OUT 

A detailed story from the War Office issued today 
says the fighting was of the most desperate character, 
entire regiments of Austrians being wiped out, with 
a loss of 25,000 killed and captured. 

The report says : 



76 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

"'For three days the Servian and Austrian armies 
were in battle along the River Drina, the theater of 
action covering a front of twenty-five miles. The 
Austrians attacked in force with all arms of the serv- 
ice represented. The Servian defense was superb. 
After breaking the force of the Austrian assault the 
Servians assumed the offensive. 

"By a series of bayonet charges the Austrian left 
wing was turned. Then a general Servian attack 
followed and the Austrians were routed, having to 
retreat in great confusion, abandoning their artillery 
and supply trains. 

' ' The Austrians lost 25,000 in killed, wounded and 
captured. Entire Austrian regiments were wiped 
out. The Austrians are now in full retreat, with the 
Servian army in pursuit. 

"Among the killed were several Austrian officers 
of high rank, while other prominent Austrian offi- 
cers are prisoners." 

AUTO DASH FOR FRENCH FRONTIER — EASTERN 
WAR MOVES 

The rapidity with which the German column moved 
on from Brussels was because Germany used her 
noted automobile corps in this dash, followed up by 
cavalry and infantry forces. The main object of 
this raiding force is to push forward with all speed 
and to discover the left of the French defensive line. 
A secondary object is to take possession of the coun- 
try so that an administrative force, following in the 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 77 

rear, can collect all available food supplies for the 
German army. 

The appearance of a German force so close to the 
English channel raises the question of England's 
exposure* to a raid. It may be accepted as certain 
that no expeditionary force of any nation can ever 
reach Great Britain while she has command of the 
sea. Transports are peculiarly vulnerable to attack 
by fast cruisers. Japan in 1904 took the risk of 
sending transports to Korea before she had cleared 
the seas of Russian cruisers, and paid for it by losing 
two transports, which were sunk, with all on board. 
No western nation would take the chance of such a 
catastrophe. 

Great Britain's safety is shown by the failure of 
the projected invasion by Napoleon in 1805. With 
the resources of France, Italy, and the Confedera- 
tion of the Rhine to draw on, he concentrated in the 
vicinity of Boulogne the Grand Army of the Re- 
public. Here he waited all summer, ready to move 
on England if an opportunity offered. When the 
French fleet, under Villeneuve, was finally shut up 
in the harbor of Cadiz by the British fleet under 
Collingwood, Napoleon gave up the hope of invading 
England and turned his armies against Austria, to 
chastise her for her attempt to join England and 
Russia in a war against France. 

By rapid marching the seven French army corps, 
starting from Boulogne on August 24, surrounded 
the Austrian army under General Mack and forced 
it to surrender at Ulm on October 20. 



78 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

Napoleon's Grand Army was organized by the 
corps system, originated by him, which is still the 
system for organizing and controlling the armies of 
Europe and America. 

The French are still holding their advance line run- 
ning from- Sedan on the south along the Meuse River 
to Dinant. From here the French line breaks back 
to Charleroi and Mons. Both the French and the 
English have been successful in suppressing all in- 
formation of the location of their, line west of Mons. 
Simplicity of control calls for the maintenance of 
the British forces as a unit, and their supply and 
reinforcement calls for them to be placed on the left 
of the allies' line. It seems probable that the allies 
have left in western Belgium only delaying forces 
that will retire as the Germans advance. 

It may be that they have drawn back their left 
wing as a trap to entice the Germans to penetrate 
into northern France. The German invading column 
would then be exposed to being cut off by the large 
French reserve army based on La Farge and Reims. 

THE GERMAN ADVANCE 

The Germans have now completed their military 
railroad around Liege, establishing direct rail con- 
nection between the army at the front and the supply 
depots on the Rhine. Reserve organizations are 
appearing at the front; it is probable that her first 
field army of 350,000 men in Belgium is now ap- 
proaching 500,000 at the front. The Kaiser has 
waited to make sure of having everything ready ; we 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 79 

may now expect to see his armies push forward to 
deliver the blow that will tell the tale of supremacy 
in Belgium. Whether the principal attack will be 
at Dinant, Charleroi, or even farther toward the west 
cannot yet be told. The German Army of the Moselle 
has advanced to the French border all along the line. 
This advance has little significance in southern Bel- 
gium and Luxemburg, as the natural line of French 
resistance would be based on her fortifications along 
the Meuse Eiver, twenty miles from the border. The 
driving back of the French invasion between Metz 
and the Vosges has especial military importance. 
Unless the French can force their way through along 
this line they will lose the advantage of taking the 
enemy in flank. 

The report of Austrian forces in Lorraine indi- 
cates that Germany is strengthening her army of the 
Moselle. It should not be assumed that the German, 
general staff is basing the success or failure of their 
invasion on the advance via Liege alone. They have 
undoubtedly carefully considered every eventuality. 
If the French rush troops to the north to stop the 
invasion via Liege and Namur, the Germans will 
have a chance to shove forward their Army of the 
Moselle to pierce the French center. 

In the control of large armies all parts of the force 
must be co-ordinated. If the Germans can pierce 
the French line they will break up the cohesion of 
the French forces and may be able to force them to 
retreat by divergent lines. The Germans could then, 
in turn, concentrate their entire armies on the various 



80 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

portions of the French forces. The weakness of a 
general defensive policy on the part of the French 
is indicated by the axiom of von Moltke, "The de- 
fensive to win must be successful at every point ; the 
offensive to win need be successful at only one point. ' ' 

The Austrian forces in Alsace are growing 
stronger. Three Austrian corps in Alsace are re- 
ported. It is possible that at least one other has 
been moved to this field of operations. Unless the 
French divert a part of their reserve armies to the 
aid of their Alsatian army, they are in danger of 
being outnumbered and driven out. 

The day's news shows an appreciable German ad- 
vance all along the line. It is most noticeable in 
northern Belgium, where matters are rapidly coming 
to a head. The French still hold Mulhausen. From 
this point north the German line follows the French 
border all the way to Givet, on the Meuse River. 
From here on the Germans have reached a line run- 
ning through Dinant, Namur, Charleroi towards 
Lille, averaging twenty miles from the French 
border. 

THE RUSSIAN SITUATION" 

The news from Russia does not show sufficient 
progress in her concentration to indicate definitely 
her plan of operations. She has three armies which 
have started their movement to the front. One based 
on Vilna lias sent raiding forces into East Prussia 
that have penetrated to Gumbinnen and Lotzen, 
thirty-five miles west of the border. These have little 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 81 

military importance except as indicating that the 
German field armies, normally assigned to this dis- 
trict, are being used elsewhere. 

The Central Russian Army in Poland is reported 
to be advancing down the valley of the Warthe River 
on the line between Warsaw in Russia and Posen in 
Germany. 

The mobilization of the army corps in the south 
of Russia was started on July 25 ; the general mobili- 
zation of the Russian forces in the north was started 
only after the German threat on July 30. The first 
Russian army to appear in force on the border 
should, then, be her southern army, to operate 
against Austrian Galicia. Conflicts of raiding par- 
ties, with varying successes, have been reported along 
the Austro-Russian border from Cracow to Lemberg. 
Neither side seems to have reached the border with 
its main army. 

Military reasons, pure and simple, call for Russia 
to exert her main effort in an advance on Berlin. 
The overrunning of Prussia and the defeat of the 
German forces will secure the acceptance by Ger- 
many of the terms of the allies. An invasion of 
Austria can have only secondary influence on the 
termination of the war. However, to arouse the Rus- 
sian nation to the support of this war Russia must 
make an attack upon Austria, "the oppressor of the 
Slavs." This makes it probable that Russia will 
make an early advance into Austria. 

Is the Russian army dangerous? Will it with- 
stand the shock of German machine troops? Will 



82 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

its enormous paper strength materialize? These 
questions, so commonly asked, called forth August 24 
the following comment from a well-known corre- 
spondent who is a military expert : 

"All eyes in Europe are turned toward the army 
of the Czar. It is the most gigantic military machine 
in the world, and no one really knows its fighting 
value. On its peace strength it disposes of a million 
of men between the German and Austrian frontiers 
in Europe and the seaboard of Vladivostok in Man- 
churia. If mobilized in its entirety it would quad- 
ruple the astounding numbers of its peace strength. 

"We are not, however, concerned with this vast 
military machine in its entirety. The European 
army corps of Russia from the point of numbers are 
considerable enough to give pause to both Germany 
and Austria if their efficiency is equal to their pon- 
derous numbers. 

ENIGMA TO STUDENTS 

"Russian military efficiency has always presented 
an enigma to the students of contemporary military 
history. By all the laws of production, the Russian 
army in Europe should be as formidable as any 
trained force in the world. It has the crowning 
advantage of experience in modern war. It is ac- 
cepted by military students that after a protracted 
campaign which has not been decided by exhaustion 
the beaten army emerges from the struggle with a 
knowledge and experience that is ahnost superior to 
that of its successful enemy. 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 83 

"The question, Was the Slavonic temperament of 
such a quality that it would profit by the lessons 
learned so bitterly in the far East? This is one of 
the questions to which the students have never yet 
been able to give a confident answer. Again, is the 
army, recruited as it from nearly a dozen races, many 
of which are secretly hostile to the central govern- 
ment, a trustworthy instrument % Again the students 
are at fault. 

NUMBERS AND SUCCESS 

"The historical record of the Russian army does 
not give one great hope that the Muscovite, with all 
its numbers, will ever be able successfully to initiate 
a campaign against an enemy with whom overwhelm- 
ing numbers are not the chief essential to success. 
Russia may mobilize her armies into millions, but has 
she the staff accommodation to manipulate them? 
Judging b}^ the story of her failure against the Jap- 
anese in Manchuria, one would say that the Russian 
officer of today is little better than he was a genera- 
tion ago. However, stern necessity may have sharp- 
ened their wits and quickened their energy for the 
great struggle. 

"The Slav mind, quick though it may be to make 
plans and estimates, is slow in interpreting them into 
action and movement. This seems to be a congenital 
fault, and it discounts much of the experience which 
Saho and Mukden brought to an army which at that 
time military students believed to be capable of all 
requirements. 



84 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

MAIN ARMY ASSET 

"The main asset of the Russian army is Ivan 
Ivanoff, the Russian soldier. Unimaginative, un- 
educated, docile by the circumstance of his lot, he 
is the best material for the manufacture of the sol- 
dier that has to die in heaps in the world. Unimagi- 
native, he is tenacious and fearless; uneducated, he 
is devoid of class ambitions and sensitiveness ; docile, 
he may be herded to death or led to victory with 
equal lack of interest in the event in which he is but 
an animal pawn. We speak, of course, of the Rus- 
sian moujik and not of the Poles and Jews that are 
serving against their wills. It is not likely that the 
Russians will exjDeriment with Polish troops in 
Galicia or East Prussia. 

"These distinctions, however, do not add to the 
simplicity of the labors of the general staff, nor do 
they make for efficiency of the railway services, upon 
which will depend any success that Russia could hope 
for in operating against her German enemies. 

"In material the Russians are well equipped. 
Though material of war goes a long way, yet it is 
not the last weight in the balance of success or fail- 
ure in war. In Manchuria the Russians had the bet- 
ter material in the wa}^ of artillery, cavalry and 
engineering equipment. It was not the material nor 
the men behind the material that failed; it was the 
directing mind. Nothing will make the writer be- 
lieve that the Russian officers, taken en masse, are 
good. Those who have graduated through the war 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 85 

schools are often brilliant theorists, but little more. 
Those who have not graduated — and this is the huge 
majority — have, it is true, a little more education 
than the men they command, but about the same limit 
of imagination. It is a case of the blind leading the 
blind." 

TWO MILLION MEN IN DEATH GRAPPLE ALONG HUNDEED- 
MILE BATTLE LINE 

August 23. — The French and English troops are 
locked in a death grapple with the Germans in the 
first great battle of the war, with its center at 
Charleroi, Belgium. 

Since dawn on Saturday two million men have 
been on the firing line, and over a battle front of 
one hundred miles. 

One million Germans, flower of the Kaiser's army, 
are face to face with the allied troops, and with 
cavalry charge and cannonade and hand-to-hand en- 
counter of the infantry, the destinies of Europe are 
trembling in the balance. 

The roar of cannon is reported from a vast area 
in southern Belgium, and wounded from both armies 
are beginning to pour into Paris. 

It is called a battle, yet that poorly describes the 
actual event, which is in reality a titanic engagement 
in which half a dozen battles are simultaneously 
being fought, any one of which dwarfs Gettysburg 
or Waterloo by comparison. 

At Mons, at Givet, along both banks of the Eiver 
Meuse, down at Neuf chateau and along toward Arlon 



86 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

the embattled powers are struggling, with varying 
success. 

RUSSIANS, REINFORCED RY THREE ARMY CORPS, 
MENACE KOENIGSBURG 

At the moment of the first decisive battle against 
the German invaders comes news of the rush of a 
vast Russian army against Koenigsburg, the most im- 
portant city of eastern Germany. Fresh from their 
victory at Gumbinnen a few days ago, the Russian 
army seized Insterburg, thirty miles inside the Ger- 
man border, and yesterday three fresh army corps 
arrived to reinforce them. Koenigsburg is now men- 
aced by this powerful foe. In their oj)erations thus 
far the Russians have taken eight German camion 
and many prisoners. 

But the eyes of the world, and especially of Eng- 
land, are tonight focused on Belgium, where the 
mighty armies are locked in a struggle which may 
last for days. 

BATTLE-LINE FROM SOUTH OF GHENT TO LUXEMBURG 

BORDER 

As nearly as can be told from the meager dis- 
patches which the censors permit to filter through, 
the battle-line extends from somewhere south of 
Ghent, southeasterly to Hal, almost due south to 
Luttre, easterly to Charleroi, south again to Wal- 
court, and east almost to the Luxemburg border. 

The allies have not waited passively for the Ger- 
mans to reach them, but have, apparently, thrown 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 87 

their line forward and are now trying to break 
through the line of the German advance to Dinant, 
thus cutting them off from their base of supplies. 

There are indications that the fighting extends 
down the Eiver Sambre all the way from Charleroi 
to Namur, where the little Belgian forts still are 
holding out and where the Germans are hammering 
at them with their heavy siege guns. 

The allies have taken advantage of a chain of forts 
across this vast battlefield, and the Germans are shell- 
ing the forts at the same time they are battering at 
the mighty mass of the allies' united armies. 

It is declared that in the first twenty-four hours 
of fighting, from Saturday morning until this morn- 
ing, the allies had " successfully hammered the Ger- 
man line of communication so that the enemy's 
position on the River Meuse is menaced." 

The main shock of the conflict is occurring at 
Charleroi, on the Sambre River, above Namur. 

Paris, Aug. 25. — Driven to their own fortifications, 
the French and British armies were today strictly 
on the defensive. Against their lines the great tidal 
wave of Germans beat with tremendous force. Fresh 
columns of German troops have been rushed through 
to the attack, while the regiments that carried the day 
yesterday have been withdrawn to rest and to refill 
their shattered columns. 

The German assault was admittedly as tremendous 
today as it was on Saturday, when the first great 
battle began. Here the German army swept the 
allies back over the whole field. 



88 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

THE FALL OF NAMUR 

Namur has fallen. The great fortress, depended 
on to hold out for weeks, collapsed in three days. 
The German line, outspread like a giant fan, has 
enveloped the entire Belgian-French and German- 
French frontiers. Against the gaps in the chain of 
fortresses thousands of Germans are being hurled. 

The French and English, hidden in hastily con- 
structed entrenchments, are striving with despera- 
tion to hold their lines. The War Office says they 
will hold. But it made the same promise about Na- 
mur, and there is grave apprehension that at last the 
Germans are going to break through and that a real 
invasion of France is threatened. 

The official bulletins issued today contain no in- 
formative details of the situation. The present posi- 
tion is referred to as the "secondary defense," but 
just where the strongest pressure is being faced is 
not stated. But the War Office insists, as on yester- 
day, that the general plan of defense is working out. 

"The battle continues along the secondary lines of 
defense," says the statement, "and the allied forces 
will hold this line while the Russian forces move in 
the general direction of Berlin. ' ' 

allies' retirement explained 

The fall of Namur appears to explain the retire- 
ment of the French and English forces to covering 
positions, which at first was accounted for only by 




Copyright by Underwood d- Underwood, N. Y., 191!, 

A group of German cavalrymen coming down an almost perpendicular 

mountainside 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 89 

the official statement that the attack of the allies had 
failed "owing to unforeseen difficulties." 

With the fall of Namur the allies could not have 
hoped to hold their line of the Sambre. 

SCENES OF WAR AT CHARLEROI 

The most desperate fighting took place in Chaiie- 
roi. The French were the first to occupy the town, 
but they were driven out by a bombardment from the 
German artillery. The Germans then entered by the 
left bank of the River Sambre, but within a short 
time more of the allies' troops arrived and the con- 
flict was renewed. The Germans sought cover in the 
houses in the lower part of the town, and to dislodge 
them the French were forced to sweep that section 
with their artillery. 

WOUNDED FILL TOWN 

The lower part of the town was soon in flames and 
the Germans were forced into the streets. Back and 
forth through these surged the contesting soldiers, 
fighting desperately for victory. The dead lay thick 
when the French were finally forced to withdraw. 

For three days wounded soldiers have been pouring 
into Maubeuge. The monastery and nunnery there are 
filledo The inhabitants have given up their homes to 
the war's victims. 

GERMAN LOSSES ENORMOUS 

An idea of the enormous losses of the Germans in 
the great battle in southwestern Belgium and of the 



90 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

bravery of the Kaiser's soldiers is given in a story 
of a returned traveler who witnessed part of the 
fighting along the Sambre River, southwest of 
Charleroi. 

"I was near Fereux, in a region covered with dense 
woods, while the fighting was taking place, ' ' said he. 
"I could hear the sound of cannon away to the east 
and knew that a big battle was raging. From my 
place in the forest I suddenly sawthe advance guard 
of a German army approaching along a roadway 
which skirted the trees. 

"There seemed to be an endless procession of sol- 
diers, all dressed in a uniform of gray. Rank after 
rank passed by, and I thought that the end would 
never come. 

"There was no hesitation. The men swung for- 
ward with quick steps and I saw officers galloping 
along the lines urging them forward. 

FRENCH OPEN EIRE 

' ' Suddenly there was a fresh sound of battle, this 
time in front of me, and I knew that the French artil- 
lery had opened upon the advance guard of the Ger- 
mans. I moved cautiously forward to a point where 
I could get a view of the battle scene. It was a view 
which seared itself into my memory. 

* * The French guns were hurling a hurricane of steel 
and flame into the German ranks, but the soldiers 
pushed forward with their battle shouts on their lips. 
Straight into that pit of destruction rushed the ad- 



EARLY STAGES OP THE WAR 91 

vancing troops. Men fell on every hand. It seemed 
that whole platoons melted away. 

"Over the bodies of the dead and wounded pushed 
the rear ranks of the invading army, rushing with 
fixed bayonets upon the smoking muzzles of the 
French artillery. It was a superb picture of gal- 
lantry. 

AEROPLANE IS SMASHED 

"Near Erquelinnes I saw a German aeroplane 
brought down. The military aviator was flying high 
in the air, taking a reconnoisance of the allies' posi- 
tions. The specially constructed guns designed to 
attack air craft were turned upon the aeroplane, but 
the aviator continued his work. Suddenly I saw the 
machine lurch, splinters flew, and then the shattered 
machine began to drop. It had been smashed by a 
cartridge. ' ' 

FLAGS SIGNAL TO GERMANS 

Wounded French soldiers who were removed from 
the battlefields in upper Alsace and Lorraine to the 
big military hospital at Borges tell stories of the pre- 
paredness and minute calculations of the Germans. 

A telegram from Bourges says : 

"The Germans were prepared for every eventual- 
ity. When the French troops entered villages the 
officials generally pretended to welcome them as 
saviors. French flags were produced and placed in 
position on trees and buildings, but the French offi- 
cers ultimately found that this was a ruse to reveal 
the location of the French forces. 



92 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

"In one village the burgomaster gave over his offi- 
cial quarters for the installation of a French military 
field telephone. Later the French found that the line 
had been tapped so that the Germans could secure 
all information which went over the wires. 

SCHOOLMASTER DIRECTS AIM 

"At another place the schoolmaster climbed to the 
belfry of the village church while German artillery 
was bombarding the French invaders and corrected 
the errors in the range of the Teutonic gunners by 
moving the hands of the clock." 

VAST MOVEMENT NOW ON PARIS 

Washington, D. C, Aug. 25. — A concentric advance 
of all the German armies toward Paris is expected. 
The Semois River, Longwy, and the greater part of 
the Belgian-French frontier are in German hands, 
according to a wireless dispatch to the German em- 
bassy from its foreign office, received today via Say- 
ville, Long Island. It says : 

' ' The German troops facing the French troops de- 
feated them in battle from August 17 to 21. Numer- 
ous ensigns, more than 150 guns and 10,000 prisoners 
have been captured. 

"general joffre's army broken up" 

"Luneville has been taken and the army of General 
Joffre, broken up, is no more capable of action. 

"The German crown prince's army has chased the 
French west of Longwy. The army of the Duke of 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 93 

Wurttemberg, marching through Belgium has 
crossed the River Semois, crushing the advancing 
French army. Numerous guns, ensigns, prisoners, 
and several generals were captured. 

DEFEAT BRITISH CAVALEY 

"German troops advancing west of the River 
Meuse toward Maubeuge defeated an English cavalry 
brigade. The River Semois, Longwy and the greater 
part of the Belgian-French frontier are in German 
hands. A concentric advance of all the German 
armies toward Paris is probable." 

THE RUSSIAN INVASION 

There has been much comment on the Russian inva- 
sion of Germany. The Russian office continues to 
claim victories on the north frontier of Germany, but 
its dispatches place the invading Russians far from 
the real German line of defense. It is believed that 
the Russian army will not have its full strength for 
at least another month. 

The Russians claim the Germans have fallen back 
on Allenstein, eighty miles north and west of the Russ 
fort at Lomsha. 

Servia, too, claims great victories over the Aus- 
trian force opposed to it at the Austro- Servian bor- 
der. It is generally understood, however, that the 
main Austrian force at this point has been withdrawn 
for the present and the remainder will be satisfied in 
holding the defensive. 



94 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

FRANZ JOSEF DYING 

From out of tragedy-splotched Austria comes the 
news that Emperor Franz Josef, one of the saddest 
figures in history, is dying. It would be the fate of 
the unhappy House of Hapsburg to have the pitiable 
old man die as he had lived — in the midst of strife 
and dissension. 

From the Orient came the news that the Japs are 
steadily bombarding the Germans in the Kiau-chau 
territory. 

There is an unconfirmed rumor that the French 
and British fleet bombardment of the Austrian port 
of Cattaro has been successful. The commander is 
said to have asked terms for surrender. It is also 
reported that the Austrian fleet has set out from 
Trieste to engage the combined French-British fleets. 

From other fleets there is not the slightest infor- 
mation. 

SUFFERING THROUGHOUT BELGIUM 

According to a dispatch from the Ostend corre- 
spondent of the London Chronicle, Belgium's losses 
so far are estimated at 40,000 killed. No estimate of 
the appalling property loss has been hazarded by the 
officials. 

Industry everywhere is at a standstill, says the 
correspondent. Not a factory or coal pit in the coun- 
try has been operated in three weeks, and not a penny 
in wages has been received by the men engaged in 
the staple activities of the nation since August 1. 

There is nothing but distress and stagnation, even 



EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 95 

in the areas untouched by the fighting. Provision for 
the feeding, housing and other care of refugees is 
being pushed feverishly. More than 4,000 refugees 
are herded in bathing cabins along the beach and in 
various small public buildings at Ostend. 

SAYS GERMANS ARE EXHAUSTED 

German officials assert that 300,000 Germans 
passed through Brussels, says the Brussels corre- 
spondent of the London Chronicle, whose messages 
reached London via Antwerp. He continues: 

"Some of the troops seemed in excellent condition 
physically, and in good spirits, but the general im- 
pression is that most of the German troops are ex- 
hausted and demoralized. 

"Because of the vast amount of food comman- 
deered by the Germans there is a scarcity of bread 
and other supplies, and famine is threatened. All 
German requisitions of food are payable in scrip, 
which is being printed freely for the use of officers. 
Most of the troops are quartered in the barracks, 
while the officers generally have put up in private 
houses in parties of seven or eight. 

BOY SCOUTS MOBILIZED 

London, Aug. 26. — In response to the call of their 
chief scout, General Sir R. Baden-Powell, more than 
100,000 boy scouts are now performing semi-military 
service throughout England, and thousands more are 
volunteering daily. Their duties include the guard- 
ing and patroling of bridges, culverts, telegraph and 



96 EARLY STAGES OF THE WAR 

telephone lines, acting as guides, serving as signalers, 
carrying dispatches, collecting information as to sup- 
plies, picking up and forwarding dispatches dropped 
by air craft, assisting coast guards as sea scouts, and 
distributing notices to inhabitants. 

In Kent alone 1,000 boy scouts are guarding rail- 
way stations, bridges and culverts, while 2,000 are 
on the lookout for possible telegraph and telephone 
wire-cutters. In calling upon the boys, General 
Baden-Powell issued the following appeal : 

"Boys of Britain! Don't go about waving flags 
and shouting because there is war; any ass can do 
that. And don't stay idle, doing nothing — that is 
almost worse. Come and do someth' ig for your 
country. She needs your help. 

"The boy scouts are now in service in all parts of 
the kingdom. Come and join the nearest troop in 
your own district, and do duty like a man." 



BOOK II 
Causes of the Great .War of Wars 

Opinions of the Most Noted Leadees 

Graphic vision of the conditions as given by Harold 
Begbie. 

Russia calls a million sixteenth century peasants 
from the fields, and Germany mows them down. 
Another million take their place. Death again. An- 
other million. And yet another million of these six- 
teenth century peasants. And w T hen it is all over, 
those who are left will go back to their fields. 

But Germany, France, England, particularly Eng- 
land and Germany, where will they turn when the 
million dead are shoveled under bloody soil? The 
bricks and mortar of industry may be still standing, 
but where will credit be found? And what will the 
millions of starving factory hands be doing? Happy 
the Russian peasant who will go back to his sixteenth 
century and his field, telling the time by the sun's 
shadow. Industry in Europe, with other things of 
older date, will lie in ruins. 

Armaments have broken the back of the laborer; 
and with the fall of the laborer all things fall, all 
things come to earth. Because of the war lords, and 
only because of the war lords, the man of science is 

97 



98 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

paralyzed and civilization stops. Humanity lias been 
fooled. Too late to discover it. 

Remember this, too. Among the young conscript 
soldiers of Europe who will die in thousands, and 
perhaps millions, are the very flower of civilization ; 
we shall destroy brains which might have discovered 
for us in ten or twenty years easements for the 
worst human pains and solutions for the worst of 
social dangers. We shall blot those souls out of 
our common existence. We shall destroy utterly 
those splendid burning spirits reaching out to en- 
lighten our darkness. Our fathers destroyed those 
strange and valuable creatures whom they called 
"witches." We are destroying the brightest of our 
angels. 

At least, then, let us not get drunk. At least, then, 
let us not sing boastful songs. Honor may call us to 
fight ; self-preservation may force us into the slaugh- 
terhouse ; but let us wear on our sleeves the crepe of 
mourning for a civilization that had the promise of 
joy, and strike our enemy without a hiccough or a 
curse. Never shall we know again what is now per- 
ishing. And we shall want all our strength for 
to-morrow. 

COMMENTS OF CHRISTIAN LEADERS 

One of the most remarkable of the comments made 
on the war is by the Catholic weekly, America, which 
says : 

' ' The conquering nation will emerge from the war 
all dripping with blood. It will wash itself clean and 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 99 

pile the gold heaven high. Throughout the world 
preachers will point a finger of one hand at the glit- 
tering mass coined from man's life blood, and lifting 
their voices will shout : ' Behold what the unadulter- 
ated Bible, the pure Gospel, has done for this nation. ' 
A finger of the other hand will be directed to the con- 
quered, despoiled nation, and men will be warned 
against a religion which has left its adherents in such 
misery. God awaits His day. The cannon will not 
roar forever, the drum will not sound for long. The 
mocking of Christ's spirit will cease. And then? 
The judgment." 

The Churchman, Episcopalian, says : 

' ' This monstrous growth of militarism must fall if 
civilization is to endure. It is falling now, and the 
more complete and costly its death-throes, and the 
more of dynastic jealousies and 'divine' rights it 
pulls down and buries with it, the freer will the field 
be for the growth of a real peace which can only 
have its roots in the brotherhood of man." 

This, from the Continent, seems to give up the case 
for Christianity: 

' ' The world is at war to-day because it is a wicked 
world. 

' ' No doubt there are men fighting to-day — millions 
of them — who fight a worthy warfare in righteous- 
ness. But the point is that neither they nor any other 
millions would need to fight if righteousness had held 
sway everywhere. 

' ' Behind that lies this other looming and unf orget- 
able fact : Jesus Christ sent his church into the world 



100 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

to teach men to love. It failed to do it in time to 
prevent this terrific catastrophe. ' ' 

The Congregationalist says : 

''Big armaments do not preserve peace, or even 
the pieces. 

"It seems strange that men should be seized with 
such a frenzy to get killed when men who have ruled 
them with a rod of iron give the word. 

' ' That the Old World nations should think it nec- 
essary to be armed to the teeth because they live 
alongside of one another is the darkest blot on our 
civilization." 

THE QUESTION 

Is this the boasted Christian age 

Of peace on earth and love to man, 

Or pagan age of murderous strife — 

The worst e'er seen since time began? 

An age of blood and jealous hate 

Where evil far outweighs the good, 

A hell on earth, where devils rage 

And brother's hands are stained with blood? 

An age where Christians kneel in prayer 

And ask the Lord, if he but will 
Assist them in their fiendish work 

And bless them as they neighbors kill? 

No wonder that the heathen scoff 

And point with scorn at Christian lands 

Where, in the name of Prince of Peace, 

They wield the sword with bloody hands. 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 101 

VIEWPOINT PREVAILING AMONG AMERICANS 

The Outlook sa3^s editorially: 

"History will hold the German Emperor respon- 
sible for the war in Europe. Austria would never 
have made her indefensible attack on Servia if she 
had not been assured beforehand of the support of 
Germany. The German Emperor's consent to co- 
operate with England in mediation would have 
halted Austria's advance. His refusal was notice 
to all Europe that Germany was Austria's ally in her 
predetermined attack on Servia. When Russia was 
seen to be preparing for a threatened war, Germany 
declared war against Russia. When France refused 
to pledge herself to neutrality, Germany made war 
on France. To doubt that Germany and Austria 
have been in practical alliance in this act of brigand- 
age — for it deserves no better name — is to shut 
one's eyes to all signs. In order to make this war 
The Hague Treaty has been disregarded, the pledge 
to observe the neutrality of the duchy of Luxemburg 
and the kingdom of Belgium has been promptly vio- 
lated. That this violation was part of the original 
plan of campaign is naively acknowledged by the 
Imperial Chancellor of Germany. In a speech to the 
German Parliament, he has said : ' Our troops have 
occupied Luxemburg and perhaps have already ad- 
vanced into Belgian territory. This is against the 
law of nations. . . . The injustice that we thereby 
committed we shall rectify as soon as our military 
object is achieved.' 



102 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

"Austria wanted Servia and proposed to take it, 
and Germany undertook to prevent other European 
powers from interfering. While the burglar enters 
the house and takes possession, his confederate keeps 
watch outside and warns the neighbors not to 
interfere." 

An American historian, reviewing the causes of 
the war, says: 

"The German Imperial Chancellor pays no high 
compliment to the intelligence of the American peo- 
ple when he asks them to believe that 'the war is a 
life-and-death struggle between Germany and the 
Muscovite races of Russia, and was due to the royal 
murders at Serajevo.' 

"To say that all Europe had to be plunged into the 
most devastating war of human history because an 
Austrian subject murdered the heir to the Austrian 
throne on Austrian soil in a conspiracy in which 
Servians were implicated is too absurd to be 
treated seriously. Great wars do not follow from 
such causes, although any pretext, however trivial, 
may be regarded as sufficient when war is deliberately 
sought. 

"The record in this case shows that every demand 
which Austria made on Servia was granted except 
one, which was only conditionally refused, and 
although this demand involved the very sovereignty 
of Servia, the government offered to submit the case 
to mediation. Diplomacy that sought peace and 
could not obtain peace out of such a situation would 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 103 

have to be in the last stages of imbecility. In such 
circumstances the responsibility for war rests upon 
the nation that begins it. 

"Nor is the Imperial Chancellor's declaration that 
'the war is a life-and-death struggle between Ger- 
many and the Muscovite races of Russia' convincing 
in the slightest degree. So far as the Russian menace 
to Germany is concerned, the Staats-Zeitung is much 
nearer the truth when its editor, Mr. Bidder, boasts 
that 'no Russian army ever waged a successful war 
against a first-class power.' 

"The life-and-death struggle between Germany 
and the Muscovite races of Russia is a diplomatic 
fiction invented after German autocracy, taking ad- 
vantage of the Servian incident, set forth to destroy 
France. It was through no fear of Russia that Ger- 
many had massed most of her army near the fron- 
tiers of France, leaving only six army corps to hold 
Russia in check. It was through no fear of Russia 
that Germany violated her solemn treaty obligations 
by invading the neutrality of Belgium and Luxem- 
burg. Germany's policy as it stands revealed by her 
military operations was to crush France and then 
make terms with Russia. The policy has failed be- 
cause of the unexpected resistance of the Belgians 
and the refusal of Great Britain to buy peace at the 
expense of her honor. 

"The 'German culture and civilization,' for which 
the Imperial Chancellor pleads, are held in the high- 
est respect everywhere ; but French culture and civ- 
ilization are quite as important to the world as Ger- 



104 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

man culture and civilization. France has contributed 
more to humanity than Germany, and in a contest 
between German autocracy and French republican- 
ism it is futile for the Imperial Chancellor to appeal 
to the American people for sympathy on the ground 
that German culture and civilization are fighting for 
their life 'against a half -Asiatic and slightly cultured 
barbarism. ' ' ' 

VIEWPOINT OF THE FRENCH 

M. Clemenceau says: 

"For twenty-five years William II has made 
Europe live under the weight of a horrible night- 
mare. He has found sheer delight in keeping it in a 
state of perpetual anxiety over his boastful utter- 
ances of power and the sharpened sword. 

"Five threats of war have been launched against 
us. since 1875. At the sixth he finds himself caught 
in the toils he had laid for us. He threatened the 
very springs of England's power, though she was 
more than pacific in her attitude toward him. 

<■ ' Eor many years, thanks to him, the Continent has 
had to join in a giddy race of armaments, drying up 
the sources of economic development and exposing 
our finances to a crisis which we shrank from dis- 
cussing. We must have done with this crowned 
comedian, poet, musician, sailor, warrior, pastor ; this 
commentator absorbed in reconciling Hammurabi 
with the Bible, giving his opinion on every problem 
of philosophy, speaking of everything, saying 
nothing. ' ' 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y., 191!, 

Emperor Franz Josef of Austria 




a 

o 

S 
>> 

fi 



-' A 



CAUSES AND PKOPHECIES 105 

M. Clemenceau sums up the Kaiser as "another 
Nero ; but Rome in flames is not sufficient for him — ■ 
he demands the destruction of the universe." 

The Methodist Times, of England, voices the feel- 
ing among the people there as follows : 

"What is the enemy? We answer without hesita- 
tion, there is only one Caesarism, and we have only 
one objective — to destroy it. Only thus can we en- 
able the nations of the world to live together in peace 
and good-will. 

' ' This is not a war of peoples and not the result of 
a man outburst of man-passion anywhere. No de- 
mocracy wanted it; no international hatreds have 
been at work ; there is no material greed or ambition 
among the impelling motives which cause us to ac- 
cept the dread arbitrament of war. The conscience 
of Great Britain, France, and heroic Belgium is an 
absolutely clear one, and the only foe is the military 
despotism of the German peoples with the Kaiser 
as their war lord. 

"German military caste has misunderstood every 
human factor with which it has to deal, and has 
counted on the unreadiness of Russia, the supposed 
worthlessness of France, and the spiritlessness and 
political divisions of Great Britain." 

VIEWPOINT OF SOCIALISM 

Upton Sinclair, the noted author of Socialistic 

novels, speaking for the Socialists of America, says: 

"Seventeen millions of men are suddenly with- 



106 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

drawn from productive industries and set to destroy- 
ing what they have previously produced. Earnest, 
patient, workingmen, men who have not the remotest 
quarrel with one another, are dragged from their 
wives and children and sent out to murder each other 
with the most intricate and expensive machines that 
human ingenuity has been able to devise. 

"I assert that never before in human history has 
there been a war with less pretense of justification. 
It is the supreme crime of the ages, a blow at the 
very throat of civilization. The three nations which 
began it, Austria, Russia, and Germany, are gov- 
erned, the first by a doddering imbecile, the second 
by a weak-minded melancholic, and the third by an 
epileptic degenerate, drunk upon the vision of him- 
self as the war lord of Europe. Behind each of these 
men is a little clique of blood-thirsty aristocrats. 
They fall into a quarrel among themselves. The 
pretext is that Servia instigated the murder of the 
heir apparent to the Austrian throne. There is good 
reason for believing that as a matter of fact this 
murder was instigated by the war party in Austria 
because the heir apparent had democratic and anti- 
military tendencies. First they murder him and then 
they use his death as a pretext for plunging the 
whole of civilization into murderous strife. 

"The people of the world did not want this war. 
They are forced into it at the point of the bayonet. 
An iron fist is closed about the throat of civilization. 
Every cry of protest is strangled. The greatest 
voice of freedom in Europe, Jaures, is shot down in 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 107 

cold blood. Thousands of Socialists in Germany and 
Austria are imprisoned or shot, and not a line of the 
news is permitted to reach the world; and this is 
what we call civilization. This is what capitalism has 
given us. This is madness and horror beyond all 
imagination. ' ' 

CAN IT BE? 

We shiver as we read the tale 

Of slaughter done by Ghengis Khan, 

Or Europe suffering the bale 

Of Attila "the scourage and flail," 
Or when the Vikings overran. 

The early land of Saxon king 

And knew no pity, spared no soul. 

Such deeds of death up-conjuring, 

The poets all our vitals wring 

And tell how man has paid the toll. 

The war gods of a thousand names, 

A thousand weapons, thousand fears ; 
Of stately cities, set in flames, 
Consumed even to their names, 

And shifting desert sands their biers. 

But this we pictured as the past 

And in our comfort thanked our fate 

That man in different mold is cast 

To-day, the world has seen the last 
Of such immeasurable hate. 

But mild the work of Tartar chief, 
Of Hun, of Norman and the rest, 

Beside this masterpiece of grief 

When man to-day drives all belief 
In God and pity from his breast. 



108 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

The thousand years of wisdom won 

Are put to services of ill! 
Must all this fancy fabric spun 
Be frayed, and all anew be done ; 

Can such, indeed, be heaven's will? 
— R. B. Mayfield, in New Orleans Time-Picayune. 

Herman Bidder, in a signed article in his news- 
paper, The Staats Zeitimg, says: 

"Sooner or later the nations engaged in war will 
find themselves spent and weary. There will be vic- 
tory for some, defeat for others, and profit for none. 
There can hardly be any lasting laurels to any of 
the contending parties. To change the map of Eu- 
rope is not worth the price of a single human life. 
Patriotism should never rise above humanity. 

"The history of war is merely a succession of 
blunders. Each treaty of peace sows the seed of 
future strife. 

"War offends our intelligence and outrages our 
sympathies. We can but stand aside and murmur, 
'The pity of it all. The pity of it all.' 

"War breeds Socialism. At night the opposing 
hosts rest on their arms, searching the heavens for 
the riddle of life and death, and wondering what 
their to-morrow will bring forth. Around a thou- 
sand campfires the steady conviction is being driven 
home that this sacrifice of life might all be avoided. 
It seems difficult to realize that millions of men, 
skilled by years of constant application, have left 
the factory, the mill, or the desk to waste not only 
their time but their very lives and possibly the lives 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 109 

of those dependent on them to wage war. brother 
against brother. 

"The more reasonable it appears that peace most 
quickly come, the more hopeless does it seem. I am 
convinced that an overwhelming majority of the pop- 
ulations of Germany, England, and France are op- 
posed to this war. The governments of these states 
do not want war. 

"War deals in human life as recklessly as the gam- 
bler in money. 

"Imagine the point of view of a commanding 
general who is confronted with the task of taking a 
fortress: 'That position will cost me five thousand 
lives; it will be cheap at the price, for it must be 
taken.' 

"He discounts five thousand human lives as easily 
as the manufacturer marks off five thousand dollars 
for depreciation. And so five thousand homes are 
saddened that another flag may fly over a few feet 
of fortified masonry. What a grim joke for Europe 
to play upon humanity ! ' ' 

H. Gr. Wells, author of great Socialistic romances, 
says: 

' ' This war is not going to end in diplomacy ; it is 
going to end diplomacy. 

"It is quite a different sort of war from any that 
have gone before. At the end there will be no con- 
ference of Europe on the old lines, but a conference 
of the world. It will make a peace that will put an 
end to Krupp, and the spirit of Krupp and Krupp- 



110 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

ism and the private armament firms behind Krupp 
for evermore." 

The age of militarism has rushed to its inevitable 
and yet surprising climax. 

The great soldier empire made for war, which has 
dominated Europe for forty years, has pulled itself 
up by the roots and flung itself into the struggle for 
which it was made. Whether it win or lose, it will 
never put itself back again. 

It is still possible to argue that to be prepared for 
war was the way to keep the peace. But now every- 
one knows better. The war has come. Outrageous 
plunder has passed into outrageous bloodshed. 

SYSTEM CHAINS EUROPE 

All Europe is in revolt against this evil system. 
There is no going back now to peace. Our men must 
die in heaps, in thousands. We cannot delude our- 
selves with dreams of easy victories. We must all 
suffer endless miseries, anxieties. Scarcely a human 
affair is there that will not be marred and darkened 
by this war. 

Out of it all must come this universal resolve 
that these iniquities must be plucked out by the 
roots. Whatever follies still lie ahead for mankind, 
this folly at least shall end here. There shall be no 
more gain in arms. 

Never did time carry so swift a burden of change 
as this time. It is manifest that in a year or so the 
world of men is going to alter more than it has 
altered in the last century and a half — more, indeed, 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES HI 

than it ever altered before in these last centuries 
since history began. 

GERMAN OFFICIAL STATEMENTS 

The German emperor, before his departure from 
the imperial capital, August 9, received Adolf Wer- 
muth, lord mayor of Berlin, to whom he handed a 
decree saying that the emperor in leaving the capital 
wished warmly to thank the population of Berlin for 
all its demonstrations and proofs of love and devo- 
tion which he had received during these sorrowful 
days. The decrees added: 

"I am firmly confident that with the help of God, the bravery 
of the German army, and the unquenchable unanimity of the 
German people, during these hours of danger, victory will 
crown our cause. 

—''William I. R." 

The German " White Paper," which is the official 
record of the nation, states the early causes of the 
war to be as follows: 

On June 28 last the successor to the Austrian 
throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife, the 
Duchess of Hohenburg, were assassinated by the re- 
volver shots of a member of a Servian band of con- 
spirators. An investigation of the crime by the 
Austro-Hungarian officials has revealed that the plot 
to take the life of the archduke was planned and 
promoted in Belgrade with the co-operation of offi- 
cial Servian individuals, and was carried out with 
weapons from the Servian government depot. 



112 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

OPEN EYES OF WORLD 

This crime was bound to open the eyes of the whole 
civilized world, not only with regard to the object of 
Servian politics as relating to the existence and in- 
tegrity of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, but also 
Avith regard to the criminal means that the Pan- 
Servian propaganda did not hesitate to employ in 
order to attain these ends. The ultimate object of 
these policies was to revolutionize gradually and 
finally to bring about a separation of the southwest- 
ern region of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy from 
that empire and unite it with Servia. 

The repeated and formal declarations of Servia to 
Austria-Hungary to bring about good neighborly re- 
lations did not change this trend of Servia politics 
in the least. For the third time in the course of the 
last six years Servia has brought Europe to the verge 
of a world-war in this manner. She could only do 
this because she believed herself supported by Rus- 
sia in her endeavors. 

GOES BACK TO 1908 

As a result of the developments of the year 1908, 
growing out of the Turkish revolution, Russian poli- 
cies had begun to organize a league of the Balkan 
states directed against the existence of Turkey under 
Russian patronage. This alliance of the Balkan 
states, which was successful in crowding Turkey out 
of her European possession in 1911, came to grief 
over the question of the disposition of the spoils. 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 113 

Russian policy was now, however, frightened by 
this failure. It was the idea of Russian statesmen 
that there should be formed a new Balkan league 
under Russian patronage, whose activities should be 
directed this tune not against Turkey, which had 
been driven from the Balkans, but against the exist- 
ence of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. The idea 
was that Servia should cede to Bulgaria the section 
of Macedonia that she had won in the last Balkan 
war and offset the loss by the acquisition of Bosnia 
and Herzegovina at the expense of the monarchy of 
the Danube. For this purpose Bulgaria, by her iso- 
lation, was to be made pliable ; Roumania, as the re- 
sult of a propaganda undertaken with the aid of 
France, was to be chained to Russia, and Servia was 
to be referred to Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

AUSTRIA TAKES ACTION 

In view of these circumstances, Austria had to 
admit that it would not be consistent either with the 
dignity or self-preservation of the monarchy to look 
on longer at the operations on the other side of the 
border without taking action. The Austro-Hungar- 
ian government advised us of this view of the situa- 
tion and asked our opinion in the matter. 

We were able to assure our ally most heartily of 
our agreement with her view of the situation, and 
to assure her that any action that she might consider 
it necessary to take in order to put an end to the 
movement in Servia directed against the existence 



114 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

of the Austro-Himgary monarchy would receive our 
approval. 

We were fully aware in this connection that war- 
like moves on the part of Austro-Hungary against 
Servia would bring Russia into the question, and 
might draw us into a war in accordance with our 
duties as an ally. However, recognizing the vital 
interests of Austria-Hungary, which were at stake, 
we could neither advise our ally to a compliance that 
would have been inconsistent with her dignity, nor 
could we deny her our support in this great hour 
of need. 

GERMANS ALSO MENACED 

We were all the more unable to do this, inasmuch 
as our interests also were seriously threatened as a 
result of the continuous Servian agitation. If Ser- 
via, with the help of Russia and France, had been 
allowed to imperil the existence of the neighboring 
monarchy any longer, this would lead to the gradual 
downfall of Austria and would result in submission 
to Slavic sway under the Russian scepter, thus ma- 
king the position of the Germanic race in central 
Europe untenable. 

A morally weakened Austria, breaking down as the 
result of the advance of Russian Pan-Slavism, would 
no longer be an ally on which we could count and 
upon whom we could rely, such as we need in view 
of the attitude of our eastern and western neighbors, 
which has constantly grown more threatening. We, 
therefore, gave Austria an entirely free hand in her 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 115 

action against Servia. We have taken no part in 
the preparations. 

Austria chose the way, laying before the Servian 
government in detail the immediate relation between 
the murder and the general Servian movement, not 
only tolerated by the Servian government, but sup- 
ported by it, which an investigation of the murder at 
Sarajevo had established. At the same time Servia 
was asked by Austria to put an absolute end to these 
activities and to allow Austria to punish the guilty 
parties. 

DEMANDS OF AUSTEIA 

Austria demanded as a guarantee for the carrying 
out of the proceedings participation in the investi- 
gation on Servian territory and the definite dissolu- 
tion of the various Pan- Servian societies carrying on 
an agitation against Austria-Hungary. The impe- 
rial and royal government set a time limit of forty- 
eight hours for the unconditional acceptance of her 
terms. One day after the Austro-Hungarian note 
had been handed to it, the Servian government began 
mobilization. 

When, after the expiration of the time limit, the 
Servian government made a reply which, while satis- 
fying the demands of Austria-Hungary on certain 
points, made known emphatically with regard to es- 
sential ones its intention to refuse the just demands 
of the monarchy by means of temporizing and the 
introduction of new negotiations. Austria broke off 
diplomatic relations with Servia without having re- 



116 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

course to further negotiations or allowing herself to 
be put off by Servian assurances, the value of which 
she knows well enough — to her sorrow. 

From that moment Austria was actually in a state 
of war with Servia, which was publicly proclaimed 
by means of the official declaration of war on the 
twenty-eighth of the month. 

From the very beginning of the conflict we took the 
stand that this was an affair of Austria which she 
alone would have to bring to a decision with Servia. 
We have, therefore, devoted our entire efforts to 
localizing the war and to convincing the other powers 
that Austria-Hungary was compelled to take justi- 
fied defensive methods and appeal to arms. 

AGAINST LACK OF CULTURE 

We took the stand emphatically that no civilized 
nation had the right in this struggle against lack of 
culture (unkultur) and criminal political morality 
to prevent Austria from acting and to take away the 
just punishment from Servia. We instructed our 
representatives abroad in that sense. 

At the same time the Austro-Hungarian govern- 
ment informed the Russian government that her 
(Austria's) move against Servia was entirely a de- 
fensive measure designed to put a stop to Servian 
agitation, but that Austria-Hungary was compelled 
by necessity to demand guarantees of a continued 
friendly attitude on the part of Servia toward the 
Austro-Hungarian monarchy. Austria-Hungary, the 
note to Russia stated, had no intention of bringing 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 117 

about a disturbance of the balance of power in the 
Balkans. 

Both the French and the English government, 
replying to our explanation that the German govern- 
ment wished and was trying to localize the conflict, 
promised to work in the same interest. In the mean- 
time these efforts did not succeed in preventing Rus- 
sia's interference in the Austro-Servian disagree- 
ment. 

RUSSIA STATES POSITION 

The Russian government issued an official commu- 
nique on July 24 according to which it would be 
impossible for Russia to remain indifferent in the 
Servian- Austrian conflict. The Russian minister for 
foreign affairs, M. Sazonof, made this position 
known to the imperial ambassador, Count Pourtales. 
In the afternoon of July 26 the Austro-Hungarian 
government again explained through its ambassador 
in St. Petersburg that Austria-Hungary had no 
plans of conquest, but only wished to have peace at 
last on her frontiers. 

In the course of the same day the first reports of 
Russian mobilization reached Berlin. On the evening 
of the twenty-sixth the imperial ambassadors at Lon- 
don, Paris, and St. Petersburg were directed to call 
the attention of the English, French, and Russian 
governments energetically to the danger of this Rus- 
sian mobilization. 

After Austria-Hungary had officially declared to 
Russia that she did not seek the acquisition of any 



118 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

territory in Servia, the decision for -world peace lay 
entirely in St. Petersburg. 

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SBentt S)u ben falfdjen SSetter nieberrmgft! 

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SBenn cr in ©idjerfjeit bcifcite ftclit. 

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@o fdjncibe fie; bie @rntc, fie ift Sein! 
28ir 3af)Ien gem bafiir mit tanfenb i>iar6en, 
SPtit £ob nnb SBunben: ®aifcr, faOr' fie cm! 

$. 9t. S o d' i f d). 

The German Imperial Chancellor, von Berthmann- 
Hollweg, stated August 14: 

"The present war is a life and death struggle 
between the German and the Muscovite races of Rus- 
sia. It is due to the recent royal murders at Seravejo. 

"We warned Russia against kindling this world 
war. She demanded the humiliation of Austria, and 
while the German Emperor continued his work in 
the cause of peace, and the Czar was telegraphing 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 119 

tvords of friendship to him, Russia was preparing 
for war against Germany. 

i i Then highly civilized France, bound by an unnat- 
ural alliance with Russia, was compelled to prepare 
by strength of arms for an attack on its flank, on 
the Franco-Belgian frontier, in case we proceeded 
against the French frontier works. 

OBLIGATIONS DISOWNED LONG AGO 

"England, bound to France by obligations dis- 
oivned long ago, stood in the way of the German 
attach on the northern coast of France. 

"This, therefore, forced us to violate the neutral- 
ity of Belgium, but we had promised emphatically 
to compensate that country for all damage inflicted. 

"Now England avails herself of the long-awaited 
opportunity to commence war for the destruction of 
the commercially prosperous Germany. 

"We enter into that war with our trust in God. 
Our entire race has risen in a fight for liberty, as it 
did in 1813. 

"It is with a heavy heart that we see England 
ranged among our opponents, notwithstanding the 
blood relationship and close relationship in spiritual 
and cultural work between the two countries. 

' ' England has placed herself on the side of Russia, 
whose insatiability and whose barbaric insolence 
have helped this war, the origin of which was murder 
and the purpose of which was the humiliation by 
Russian Panslavism. 



120 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

"We expect that the sense of justice of the Ameri- 
can people will enable them to comprehend our situ- 
ation. We invite their opinion as to the one-sided 
English representations and ash them to examine our 
point of view in an unprejudiced way. 

"The sympathy of the American nation will then 
lie with German culture and civilization, fighting 
against a half Asiatic and slightly cultured bar- 
barism. ' ' 

The New York Herald had from its London cor- 
respondent on August 4, the following: 

"The Kaiser up to the very last moment almost 
went down on his knees to Russia to induce her to 
desist from her mobilization. The dramatic story 
of the final interview between the German ambassa- 
dor and the Russian minister of foreign affairs shows 
that again and again the request was made, and it 
was made at the very time that King George was 
urging the same thing. Thus two royal cousins up 
to the fifty-ninth minute of the twelfth hour used 
every influence at their command to put out the fire, 
but it had gone too far. 

"Nothing then remained for the Emperor but to 
do literally the best he could. Since then the Impe- 
rial William, true to the traditions of his race, pro- 
ceeded on the principle that the race is to the swift 
and the battle to the strong. The remarkable alac- 
rity with which the German army has been mobilized 
so that perhaps by this time one million and a half 
men are in the field, is one of the marvels of military 
operations." 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y., 1911, 

German Jack tars lowering their wounded into the hospital between 

deck 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 121 

Hugo Muensterberg, the noted psychologist and 
philosopher of Harvard, says: 

"For twenty-five years the German Emperor has 
been the most efficient power for European peace. 
He has done more for it than all the European peace 
societies together, and however often the world 
seemed at the verge of war, his versatile mind averted 
the danger. He knew too w T ell and the whole German 
people knew too well that the incomparable cultural 
and industrial growth of the nation since the founda- 
tion of the young empire w^ould be horribly threat- 
ened by the risks of war. Can any sane man really 
believe the slander that all was a long prepared game 
which Austria was to start and in which Germany 
would wilfully force the furies of war into the Rus- 
sian realm. 

"No! this time every effort was in vain, and all 
good will for peace was doomed because the issue 
between the onrushing Slavic world and the German 
world had grown to an overpowering force. The 
struggle between the two civilizations was imminent, 
and where such a historic world conflict arises, the 
will of individuals is crushed until they serve the will 
of the nations. The Slavs of the Southeast, the Ser- 
vians, had defeated their oppressors, the Turks. It 
was inevitable that their new strength should push 
them to ambitious plans. It was necessary that they 
should aim toward a new great Slavic empire which 
would border the sea and embrace Austria's Slavic 
possessions. That had to mean the end of Austria, 
the crumbling of its historic power. Such an inner, 



122 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

passionate conflict, such an issue of existence, must 
lead to explosions. Servians killed the arch-duke. 
That was Austria 's opportunity for an effort to crush 
the power which aimed toward its downfall. 

To be sure, there is no lack of elements in this war 
which do hurt the moral feeling. In victory or de- 
feat, Germans will hardly forget the flight of Italy, 
which, under the flimsiest subterfuges, has deserted 
its allies in the hour of need. And immoral above all 
is the effort of the world to strangle the spirit of 
Germany by the mere number of enemies. That truly 
is not fair; no moral fight, if Germany and Austria 
are not to stand against Russia and Servia alone, 
which together have a population equal to that of the 
two opponents, but are also attacked from behind 
by France and England, perhaps by Roumania and 
Japan, and last but not least by the misled public 
opinion of America." 

WILHELM II, PRINCE OF PEACE 

Prince of Peace, Lord of War, 
Uiisheath thy blade without a stain, 

Thy holy wrath shall scatter far 

The bloodhounds from thy country's fane! 

Into thy hand the sword is forced, 
By traitor friend and traitor foe, 

On foot, on sea, and winged and horsed, 
The Prince of Darkness strikes his blow. 

Crush thou the Cossack arms that reach 
To plunge the world into the night! 

Save Goethe's vision, Luther's speech, 
Thou art the Keeper of the Light 1 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 123 

When darkness was on all the lands, 

Who kept God's faith with courage grim? 

Shall He uphold that country's hands, 
Or tear its members, limb from limb? 

God called the Teuton to be free, 

Free from Great Britain's golden thrall 

From guillotine and anarchy, 

From pogroms red and whips that fall. 

May thy victorious armies rout 

The savage tribes against thee hurled, 

The Czar whose sceptre is the knout, 
And France, the harlot of the world ! 

But thy great task will not be done 

Until thou vanquish utterly, 
The Norman brother of the Hun, 

England, the Serpent of the Sea. 

The flame of war her tradesmen fanned 
Shall yet consume her, fleet and field; 

The star of Frederick guide thy hand, 
The God of Bismarck be thy shield ! 

, Against the fell Barbarian horde 
Thy people stand, a living wall; 
Now fight for God's peace with thy sword, 
For if thou fail, a world shall fall ! 

— George Sylvester Viereck. 

AN APPEAL TO SWEDEN 
YOU ARE HER MOTHER 

O, viking-mother Svea, do not yield 

To cossack-promise or barbaric fawn! 

No, point your runic sword, already drawn, 
Against the Eastern horde, and there it wield ! 



124 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

Upon your knees YOU stood behind your shield 
Not long ago and fought the dragon-spawn 
In desperation's vale, bereft of dawn, 

Until your heart-blood quenched your burning field ! — 

Germania is your daughter, fair and young, 

Your shield-maid, mother, and your nearest friend ; 
Stand firm with HER, when Leikin's forges glow! 1 
On trembling heels not YOU have ever swung 
In bygone days, nor have you changed your trend ! 

And, mother, HONOR'S road is yours, you know. 

—J. G. R. Baner. 

THE JEWISH VIEW 

An editorial during the first week of the war, here 
translated from the German Jewish newspaper, Die 
Wahrheit, appears to represent fairly the general 
Jewish view: 

"Europe will split into two groups: Austria-Hun- 
gary, Germany and Italy on one side, and Russia, 
England, France, Roumania, Servia, Bulgaria, and 
Greece on the other. 

"The question is: With which side shall we Jews 
align ourselves? Where lies our interest? With 
which side shall we sympathize? 

"These questions answer themselves. 

"At this time there are but three countries in the 
Old World whose people are not openly antagonistic 
to the Jews. And these countries are Germany, 
Austria, and Italy. 

' ' In no country at any time in history have we been 
persecuted and baited as in Russia, Roumania, and 
Greece. 



CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 125 

"In a war in which the throats of 20,000,000 sol- 
diers and 100,000 guns will determine the fate of na- 
tions and races for centuries to come, and where our 
fate, too, that of the Jewish race, for many genera- 
tions will be determined, we have no choice what side 
to take, with whom to sympathize, and which group 
of combatants to wish success. 

"Those nations which are with us and for us will 
find us on their side. Those banners will be found 
waving over our heads when we go into battle which 
insure to the Jews the pursuit of life, happiness, and 
religious tolerance. 

"With all our hearts we pray that those who are 
personally responsible for this terrible war may re- 
ceive their personal punislnnent. But once begun, it 
is no longer a war of Kaiser Francis Joseph — it is 
Austria's war. It is not a war of Kaiser William, 
but Germany's war — and these countries have been 
good to us, and we shall be good to them. 

"Russia has always been anti-Semitic and will 
always remain so, and in Roumania the Jews are 
treated like dogs. 

' ' In Greece the Jews are oppressed, and even Eng- 
land has in receut time started to persecute us, while 
in France our environments are almost unbearable 
as during the Dreyfus scandal. 

"All this draws us and our sympathies to one side. 
With a curse upon those who are forcing the Jews to 
leap at each others' throats, forcing Austrian Jews 
to fight Russian, and German Jews against French, 
and with anathema upon war in general, we Jeivs see 



126 CAUSES AND PROPHECIES 

our salvation in the defeat of Russia and her allies, 
and the triumph of Austria and Germany." 

HISTORICAL STATEMENT OF THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 

THE DEFINITION OF A STATE BY DEMOCRACY AND 

GERMAN IMPERIALISM 

The democracy believes that the state exists for the 
individuals, and that the individuals, therefore, are 
above the state. The idea of the Emperor is that he- 
is the symbol of the state as a whole, independent 
from the will of the individuals, and therefore inde- 
pendent of any elections, the hearer of the historic 
tradition, above the struggle of single men. 

For the German, the state is not for the individ- 
uals, but the individuals for the state. It is the same 
contrast which gives to every realm of German civ- 
ilization its deepest meaning. The American view 
is that science and art and law, like the state, exist 
for the good of the individual persons; their whole 
value is to serve them. The Germans believe that 
science and art and law and state are valuable in 
themselves; and the highest glory of the individual 
is to serve these eternal values. 

In the eyes of the Germans, Germany itself 
would lose its meaning if this idealistic belief were 
destroyed. In the symbol of the crown, far above 
the struggles of partisan individuals, lies the idea of 
the German nation. Its territory may be dismem- 
bered, its people may be bleeding, but the unity of 
nation and Emperor will not be lost. 



CAUSES AND PEOPHECIES 127 

THE ONLY PEACE 

There is no peace, nor will be peace, 

Till out of war there springs 
A Europe free from chains, to whelm 

Its rotten breed of kings. 

Peace, with the Hapsburg on his throne? 

Peace, while the Eussian Czar 
Crushes the hearts and hopes of men 

'Neath his imperial car? 

Peace, while the Teuton, free of yore, 

Submits him, soul and mind, 
Bending before a despot's whim 

As reeds before the wind ? 

Imperial England! Ye that held 

The lordship of the waves, 
Do ye sow peace through all the lands? 

Nay, empires must have slaves! 

ye that out of shop and field 

Marched at the bugle's call, 
One gesture with the arms ye bear 

And all your kings must fall ! 

Poor fools that lard the earth with blood— 

Whose victories are defeat — 
Fat crops grow of your sacrifice, 

But only princes eat. 
******* 

War . . . war ... a planet red with war 

And loud with rolling drums . . . 
Perhaps now across the verge 

Of night the morning comes . . . 



128 CAUSES AND PKOPHECIES 

Then haste, make haste, Liberty! 

Thy peoples bleed — make haste.! 
The shag beast harries all the fields, 

The tusked boar lays waste. 

Come thou in peace, if peace can be, 

Earth's only overlord . . . 
Come thou in peace . . . but if thou must, 

Come with thy cleansing sword ! 

Come with Christ's love and Plato's light 
To claim the fruitful years . v . . 

But if thy path be clogged with kings 
Come red, and ringed with spears ! 

Come clad in peace . . . but if thou must, 

Lift up the battle gage, 
And come in thunder and in flame 

And helmed with holy rage ! 

No peace there is, no peace can be, 

So long as moon or sun 
Sheds light upon some despot's act 

Of foul oppression done. 

No peace there is, nor peace can be, 
Till out of strife there springs 

A Europe strong, and nerved to whelm 
Its rotten breed of kings. 



SMASHING THE MACHINERY OF 
CIVILIZATION 

THE STAGGERIXG BLOW 

What we are now sure of is that no man living ever 
experienced such a shock to the financial fabric of 
the whole world. He never saw industry and com- 
merce so stricken down so widely by a single blow 
of war. He never saw the entire machinery of mod- 
ern life so thrown out of gear. He never saw civili- 
zation and Christianity itself made to appear such a 
ghastly farce. 

Such comment is not to be made merely as if we 
were all to stand hopelessly wringing our hands over 
an irretrievable calamity. Even in the midst of the 
universal excitements and obsessions of war, the lead- 
ing minds of the world should be forward-looking. 
They should be fixing their thoughts on exactly what 
has happened, and preparing their energies to make 
sure that it can never happen again. The nature of 
the catastrophe that has befallen the world is clear. 
Slowly and painfully, with the application of the 
finest skill to be commanded, the community of na- 
tions had built an intricate and delicate machine. 
The act of madmen has smashed it. On a tremendous 
scale there has occurred what takes place on a smaller 
scale when a crazy man flings a crowbar into a com- 
plicated engine, or wrecks a huge dynamo. The dis- 

129 



130 SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 

aster is not beyond repair. In time, civilization will 
get its machinery running again. But it will not be 
a civilization worthy of the name — will not be either 
prudent or strong — unless it takes a bond of fate 
against being reduced to impatience and dismay 
again by the acts of lunatics of the future. 

Recall the offishness and the objection raising 
spirit in which most of the nations went to the first 
Hague conference. Some of the delegates hardly 
concealed their sneers at the fantastic dreams of 
peace. It was at about that time that the German 
Chancellor stated that it was impossible to find a 
"formula" in accordance with which the great pow- 
ers might agree to disarm. Well, that formula civ- 
ilization will have to insist that statesmen find, or 
else be turned incontinently out of their jobs. 

HAS CHRISTIANITY FAILED ? 

Each nation as it hurls itself on its fellow, calls on 
its God to aid it in the fight. And all are calling on 
the same God — the God of Peace, "the God who 
maketh men to be of one mind in a house." 

Can these men and nations, bent on wholesale mur- 
der, in any real sense be Christians at all ? Is there 
any connection whatever between the teachings of 
Jesus and what they believe ? 

How can any man kneel to the God and Father of 
Jesus, and then rush forth to kill his fellowmen? 

And from such questions there must in the minds 
of many arise another — since, at least temporarily, 
all the restraints of the Christian religion have been 



SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 131 

by millions cast aside. Are the commands of Jesus, 
the things He stood for and died for, are they prac- 
tical ? Can mankind in the gross ever be expected 
to live by them? Are they not as angels' food, too 
high and pure and holy for our actual grosser life? 

Looking squarely at things as they are, can we 
believe that a spirit of obedience to the Lord of Peace 
and Good Will will some day "cover the earth as 
the water covers the seas," and at last "wars cease 
in all the world"? 

What answer can we make to such hard questions ? 
Yet all men who think and feel must make some 
answer, are even making answer now, must either 
admit that Christianity has proved a failure, that it 
cannot restrain the beast in man, or that, spite of this 
horrifying outburst of barbarism, a clearer, saner, 
more brotherly idea of life is slowly growing in the 
mind of man. 

Can anyone who observes the course of things 
doubt that the spirit of brotherliness is growing ? 

Can any of us, looking on in stupefaction at this 
tragedy of the nations, yet doubt that for every such 
awful, if temporary, return to moral chaos, a mighty 
revulsion of the spirit must arise against war? 

Surely not in the minds of onlooking millions only 
— not even in the hearts of those other many millions 
torn by agony as they part with the men who make 
life to them worth the living — but also in the secret 
thoughts of those advancing hosts, innocent boys, and 
men in life's prime, marching forth from homes they 
have builded and from women and children they have 



132 SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 

loved, marching at the bidding of they scarcely know 
what, into the valley of the shadow of death. 

Of what are they all, these embattled millions, 
thinking ? 

War embrutalizes some men, but these are the few, 
the men in whom the beast is already predominant. 
It does not embrutalize the good man, and those who 
know its dreadful reality are for it filled with loath- 
ing and hatred. So much we know. 

In spite, then, of this last failure of Christianity 
to influence the conduct of nations, certain tilings are 
sure, and to them let us hold fast. 

The spirit of Jesus has given to the modern world 
a new sense of pity. It has given it a new sense of 
neighborliness ; multitudes feel, as never before, they 
are their brother's keeper. 

It has limited the ordinary man's power as well as 
his wish to revenge his personal wrong. He has less 
recourse to bludgeon and sword, and more to arbi- 
tration. 

Here, then, are undoubted facts. In these direc- 
tions the teachings of Jesus have profoundly influ- 
enced modern life. If national life and racial passion 
still resist Christian morals, is it not reasonable to 
suppose that it must leaven and purify even these 
as it has modified and softened man's contact with 
man? It must be so. 

Deep down in our hearts, in the presence of sor- 
rows of death, we know that we are brothers all. 

It is easier and more natural, when the hour of 
insight is on us, to help even an enemy than to hurt 



SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 133 

him; to bind up the stranger's wounds, and take him 
to an inn, than to leave him alone and unattended 
by life's highway to die. 

These are no longer the creeds of the few; they are 
the groiving impulses of the million. 

SENTIMENTS THAT ARE PREVAILING CONCERNING WAR 

Dr. Jacob Gr. Schuman of Cornell University, New 
York, expresses his opinion as follows : 

1 ' The toiling masses of the modern world are feel- 
ing both the cost of war and the cost of armed peace 
as most oppressive. The field of battle is a ghastly 
exhibition of carnage and death and horrible suffer- 
ing, and its blight overspreads the nation in ruined 
homes and broken hearts. . . . On the other hand, 
our armed peace presses down upon us like a throt- 
tling nightmare, allowing us indeed to live, but only 
in the feeling of suffocation and exhaustion. . . . 
And the masses of the people, in spite of all the ad- 
vances made by science and invention, are oppressed 
by a poverty which is the more resented because it is 
unnecessary. 

"The governments of the world . . . are out of 
harmony with the best sentiments of the people. But 
by playing upon international jealousies, they have 
hitherto secured the support of the majority. And 
in this game they have potent support from the 'spe- 
cial interests' in the respective countries which stand 
to gain by war. For war gives power and office to 
the politician, fame and promotion to the captain and 



134 SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 

general, undue profits to the dealers in military sup- 
plies, and fortunes to the makers of ships and guns 
and all the munitions of war. 

"Fortunately, the masses of the laboring men are 
everywhere coming to recognize that war means loss 
and death to them. Labor unions and Socialists have 
become preachers of peace. Self-interest has quick- 
ened their humanitarianism ; and they are today one 
of the foremost agents of humanity and international 
brotherhood. I sometimes think our churches have 
been too subservient to the powers of the world." 

Dr. Samuel Dickie, president of Albion College, 
Michigan, says: 

"War promises jobbery, invites fraud, and creates 
a condition invariably seized upon by the shrewd 
and unscrupulous to gather to themselves fortunes 
which they have not earned, and to bind upon the 
necks of the masses burdens which they are often 
compelled to transfer to their children after them. 
At the last analysis it is the working man, the pro- 
ducer, who must pay the bills. 

"War breeds fraud, and crime, and vice, and 
vagrancy ; yields pain, and death, and sorrow, and it 
is the working man who, in large numbers, must fur- 
nish the victims of all this horrible savagery. Of all 
classes, those who are in the rank of the honest toilers 
have the greatest reason to protest against war." 

Dr. David Starr Jordan, president of Leland Stan- 
ford University, California, and author of a power- 
ful book on war entitled "The Blood of the Nation," 
says: 



SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 135 

"True patriotism has nothing to do with the war 
spirit. It is a matter of life and work to make the 
lives of others better. To respond to the drum is not 
patriotism. The patriot is in the soldier of fortune. 
. . . The martial spirit belongs to the medieval 
world, when fighting was the chief business of man, 
and when plunder was the chief motive for fighting, 
as it has been all through the ages. The growth of 
science, the development of invention, the spread of 
religion, are all bound up in the maintenance of 
peace. Virility depends on struggle, the struggle 
against the evils of the world and the conditions of 
life. It is in no way dependent on drums and flags, 
nor on the killing of men, either individually or col- 
lectively. War was once universal. . . . We have 
made it so costly that its continuance means national 
ruin. The whole world is still paying the bills in- 
curred by Napoleon, Bismarck, and the timber 
thieves and the promoters in eastern Siberia. Just 
as baronial wars, religious wars, feudal wars, inqui- 
sitions, crusaders and coats-of-mail vanished when 
the people saw them with clear vision, so interna- 
tional wars will come to an end when the people see 
them as they are. That time has now come, and only 
the money that there is in it to builders and pro- 
moters keeps in existence the standing armies and 
the navies of today." 

Nations in the midst of a society of nations have 
no more right to resort to bloody violence in the name 
of justice than an individual in a society of 
individuals. 



136 SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 

THE CALL TO THE COLORS 

O world's women sisters of every seeming, 

"Wake for there's heavy work this day for us to do! 
The word goes forth it must not find us dreaming : 

The woman 's call to colors sounds the whole world through ! 
Gardens are trampled down, fields devastated: 

None is too weak, too strong, that she may stand apart, 
With breasting babes orphaned, wife and maid miniated, 

Our men aiming bullets at every woman's heart! 

O world's women, mothers of every trial, 

Not for war's blasphemy your travail pains are borne, 
Or sons reared to manhood by love and self-denial, 

Your holy aureole to turn to crown of thorn ! 
Is not this the right for which ye are striving, 

Passing man's power to endow you or deny; 
Men-children reared in ways of honest thriving, 

Slaughtered and slaughterer, ye shall not let them die ? 
O world's women, lovers of every nation, 

Now, where the thunderbolts of war are being hurled, 
Rally to the colors, muster at the station ; 

March on to victory — of peace throughout the world! 

— Marguerite Merington. 

LIVING IN THE TIME OF A GREAT WAR 

It is the way of human nature to be dissatisfied 
with present day existence and long for the rare old 
times, when big things were afoot. Oh, to have lived 
in the Napoleonic era ! Or seen the Spanish Armada 
sunk! Or sat through the first night of " Hamlet" 
and read the "Sonnets" fresh from the press! 

Well, here is the greatest war of history upon us, 
and what do we, its contemporaries, get from it in 




"5 2 u 








Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y., 19H 

Czar Nicholas of Russia 



SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 137 

the way of large emotions or splendid ideas ? Aston- 
ishingly little, would be the general verdict, we think. 
According to our varying sensibilities, we are sick- 
ened or shocked or amazed. The first impossible, 
unbelievable quality of the war has passed away and 
we are all doing our best to realize the vast armies, 
the terrible losses and the whole scope of Europe's 
tragedy, the greatest that has befallen the civilized 
world. That we are most of us utterly failing to rise 
to the occasion is the common confession. 

Why? The distance of it all from our own homes 
offers a partial explanation. On the first conception 
of the terrible events now staining the map of Eu- 
rope, something besides mere reading of names and 
figures, or even seeing the actual dead and wounded, 
is needed. There must be a vivid imagining of the 
whole vast canvas, of its inspiration in the past and 
its significance for the future, before any complete 
conception of it can be had. Minds of genius must 
illuminate the dark places before any clear vision is 
possible. 

It may seem like fantastic suggestion, but do not 
such names as Agincourt, Flodden Field, Bunker 
Hill, Gettysburg, speak more real tragedy to us than 
all the sickening details of Liege? Does anj^one in 
the shadow of a great event feel its true weight and 
affliction ? 

THE VAST SACEIFICE 

The assertion that the German military authori- 
ties stand ready to " sacrifice" 100,000 men, if this 



138 SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 

be necessary to victory, makes a striking newspaper 
headline. But does it not pitifully minimize the 
case? Is not Germany ready to ''sacrifice" the lives 
of 1,000,000 men, if this be deemed necessary? And 
is not France ready to "sacrifice" 1,000,000, or twice 
that number, if by so doing she can be spared an- 
other German invasion ? 

In a sense men are mere pawns in this great game, 
but it is not to be forgotten that they are willing 
pawns and are going to willing sacrifice. 

Eegardless of where the primal responsibility lies 
— and men will never agree about this any more than 
they agree now — the war as it is being fought is a 
war of peoples, of races. This does not make it any 
the less horrible to contemplate ; but it should make 
every American more tolerant of those who, because 
of ties of blood, see fit to entertain views of its merits 
and concerning its outcome that differ from his own. 

PROPHECIES 

Sooner or later the nations engaged in war will 
find themselves spent and weary. There will be vic- 
tory for some, defeat for others and profit for none. 
There can hardly be any lasting laurels to any of 
the contending parties. To change the map of Eu- 
rope is not worth the price of a single human life. 
Patriotism should never rise, above humanity. 

The history of war is merely a succession of blun- 
ders. Each treaty of peace sows the seed of future 
strife. War offends our intelligence and outrages 
our sympathies. 



SMASHING MACHINERY OF CIVILIZATION 139 

We are living in a day of great surprises. History 
does not often furnish such examples of sudden and 
swift changes. The course of events may lead into 
unexpected channels. 

Europe is likely to change more in the next year 
than it has in the last fifty. It is about time for the 
politics of Europe to emerge from the medieval 
shadow of diplomacy and be conducted in twentieth 
century fashion. 

War breeds socialism. At night the opposing 
hosts rest on their arms, searching the heavens for 
the riddle of life and death, and wondering what 
their tomorrow will bring forth. Around a thousand 
camp-fires the steady conviction is being driven home 
that this sacrifice of life might all be avoided. It 
seems difficult to realize that millions of men, skilled 
by years of constant application, have left the fac- 
tory, the mill, or the desk, to waste not only their 
time but their very lives and possibly the lives of 
those dependent on them, to w T age war, brother 
against brother. 

War deals in human life as recklessly as the gam- 
bler in money. Imagine the point of view of a com- 
manding general who is confronted with the task of 
taking a fortress. "That position will cost me five 
thousand lives; it will be cheap at the price, for it 
must be taken." He discounts five thousand human 
lives as easily as the manufacturer marks off five 
thousand dollars for depreciation. And so five thou- 
sand homes are saddened that another flag may fly 
over a few feet of fortified masonry. 



NEUTRALITY OF THE UNITED STATES 

WORDS THAT SAVED UNITED STATES FROM CONFLICT 

"Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence (I conjure 
you to believe me, fellow citizens) the jealousy of a free people 
ought to constantly awake, since history and experience prove 
that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of repub- 
lican government. . . . Europe has a set of primary inter- 
ests which to us have none of a very remote relation. Hence 
she must be engaged in frequent controversies, the causes of 
which are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence, there- 
fore, it must be unwise in us to implicate ourselves by artificial 
ties in the ordinary vicissitudes of her politics or the ordinary 
combinations and collisions of her friendships or enmities." 
— From "Washington's Farewell Address. 

AMERICAN NEUTRALITY — PRESIDENT WILSON DEPLORES 

"HYPHENATED AMERICANS," DECLARING ALL 

SHOULD FORGET FOREIGN ORIGIN IN 

THE PRESENT CRISIS 

Washington, Aug. 18. — President Wilson, in a 
public appeal addressed to the American people, 
today asked that citizens of the United States refrain 
from "taking sides" in the general European war, 
pointing out that all should be neutral in thought as 
well as in word. This, he says, is the most certain 
way of preserving American peace. 

The President deplores what he calls "hyphenated 
Americanism," maintaining that the name "Anier- 

140 



NEUTRALITY OF THE UNITED STATES 141 

ican" should not be coupled with that of any other 
nationality. The statement follows : 

My Fellow Countrymen: 

I suppose that every thoughtful man in America has asked 
himself during the last troubled week what influence the 
European war may exert upon the United States, and I take 
the liberty of addressing a few words to you in order to point 
out that it is entirely within our own choice what its effects 
upon us will be and to urge very earnestly upon you the sort 
of speech and conduct which will best safeguard the nation 
against distress and disaster. 

The effect of the war upon the United States will depend upon 
what American citizens say and do. Every man who really 
loves America will act and speak in the true spirit of neutrality, 
which is the spirit of impartiality and fairness and friendliness 
to all concerned. 

The spirit of the nation in this critcal matter will be deter- 
mined largely by what individuals and society and those 
gathered at public meetings do and say, upon what newspapers 
and magazines contain, upon what our ministers utter in their 
pulpits and men proclaim as their opinions on the streets. 

OUR PEOPLE DRAWN FROM THE NATIONS AT WAR 

The people of the United States are drawn from many 
nations, and chiefly from the nations now at war. It is natural 
and inevitable that there should be the utmost variety of 
sympathy and desire among them with regard to the issues and 
circumstances of the conflict. Some will wish one nation, others 
another, to succeed in the momentous struggle. 

It will be easy to excite passion and difficult to allay it. 
Those responsible for exciting it will assume a heavy responsi- 
bility; responsibility for no less a thing than that the people 
of the United States, whose love of their country, and whose 
loyalty to its government, should unite them as Americans, all 
bound in honor and affection to think first of her and her 
interests, may be divided in camps of hostile opinion, if not 
against each other involved in the war itself in impulse and 
opinion, if not in action. Such diversions among us would be 
fatal to our peace of mind and might seriously stand in the way 
of the proper performance of our duty as the one great nation 
at peace; the one people holding itself ready to play a part of 



142 NEUTRALITY OF THE UNITED STATES 

impartial mediation and speak the counsels of peace and accom- 
modation, not as a partisan, but as a friend. 

MUST BE NEUTRAL IN THOUGHT AND ACTION 

I venture, therefore, my fellow countrymen, to speak a 
solemn word of warning to you against that deepest, most subtle, 
most essential breach of neutrality, which may spring out of 
partisanship, out of passionately taking sides. The United 
States must be neutral in fact as well as in name during these 
days that are to try men's souls. We must be impartial in 
thought as well as in action, must put a curb upon our senti- 
ments as well as upon every transaction that might be construed 
as a preference of one party to the struggle before another. 

My thought is of America. I am speaking, I feel sure, the 
earnest wish and purpose of every thoughtful American that 
this great country of ours, which is, of course, the first in our 
thoughts and in our hearts, should show herself in this time 
of peculiar trial a nation fit beyond others to exhibit the fine 
poise of undisturbed judgment, the dignity of self-control, the 
efficiency of dispassionate action ; a nation that neither sits in 
judgment upon others, nor is disturbed in her own counsels, 
and which keeps herself fit and free to do what is honest and 
disinterested and truly serviceable for the peace of the world. 

Shall we not resolve to put upon ourselves the restraint which 
will bring to our people the happiness and the great and last- 
ing influence for peace we covet for them? 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS LEADING UP 
TO THE DECLARATION OF WAR 

FIRST EVENTS 

At 6 o'clock on the evening of July 23 the Austro- 
Hungarian minister at Belgrade presented to the 
Servian government a note containing the demands 
of the dual monarchy with regard to the suppression 
of the Pan-Servian movement and the punishment of 
those alleged to be concerned in the assassination of 
the archduke, Franz Ferdinand, which took place on 
June 28 at Sarajevo. Just thirteen days later 
Austria-Hungary and Germany found themselves at 
war with Russia, France, England, Belgium, Servia, 
and Montenegro, at present involving an expense of 
$50,000,000 a day and the murderous activity of over 
17,000,000 men. " 

Unexpected as an earthquake came the shock of 
mobilizing vast armies for a conflict whose slaughter 
and ruin were beyond the calculation or imagination 
of any man. 

Following the Austrian note sent Servia, a com- 
pliance with the terms of which would have made 
Servia a protectorate of the dual monarchy, the 
Vienna government issued on July 24 a circular note 
to Germany, France, England, Italy, Russia, and 
Turkey, and a communique to foreign press agencies 
explaining its action toward Servia. 

143 



144 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

HISTORICAL PARAGRAPHS OF THE NOTE PRESENTED TO 

THE SERVIAN GOVERNMENT, JULY 23, BY THE 

AI7STRO-HTTNGARIAN MINISTER AT 

BELGRADE 

The history of recent years, and in particular the painful 
events of June 28 last, have shown the existence in Servia of 
subversive movement with the object of detaching a part of 
Austria-Hungary from the monarchy. The movement, which 
had its birth under the eyes of the Servian Government, has 
had consequences on both sides of the Servian frontier, in the 
shape of acts of terrorism, and a series of outrages and murders. 

Far from carrying out the formal undertakings contained in 
the declaration of March 31, 1909, the Royal Servian Govern- 
ment has done nothing to repress these movements. It has 
permitted the criminal machinations of various societies and 
associations, and has tolerated unrestrained language on the 
part of the press, apologies for the perpetrators of outrages, 
and the participation of officers and functionaries in subversive 
agitation. It has permitted an unwholesome propaganda in 
public instruction. In short, it has permitted all the manifesta- 
tions which have incited the Servian population to hatred of 
the monarchy and contempt of its institutions. 

This culpable tolerance of the Royal Servian Government had 
not ceased at the moment when the events of June 28, last, 
proved its fatal consequences to the whole world. 

It results from the depositions and confessions of the criminal 
perpetrators of the outrage of June 28, that the Sarajevo 
assassinations were hatched in Belgrade, that the arms and 
explosives with which the murderers were provided had been 
given to them by Servian officers and functionaries belonging 
to the Naroda Obrava, and, finally, that the passage into Bosnia 
of the criminals and their arms was organized and effected by 
the chiefs of the Servian frontier service. 

The above-mentioned results of the magisterial investigation 
do not permit the Austro-Hungarian Government to pursue any 
longer the attitude of expectant forbearance which it has main- 
tained for years in face of the machinations hatched in Belgrade 
and thence propagated in the territories of the monarchy. These 
results, on the contrary, impose on it the duty of putting an 
end to intrigues which form a perpetual menace to the tran- 
quillity of the monarchy. 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 145 

To achieve this end, the Imperial and Royal Government 
sees itself compelled to demand from the Servian Government 
a formal assurance that it condemns this dangerous propaganda 
against the monarchy and the territories belonging to it. and 
that the Royal Servian Government shall no longer permit these 
machinations and this criminal and perverse propaganda. 

In order to give a formal character to this undertaking the 
Royal Servian Government shall publish on the front page of 
its official journal for July 26, the following declaration : 

"The Royal Government of Servia condemns the propaganda 
directed against Austria-Hungary, i. e., the ensemble of 
tendencies of which the final aim is to detach from the Austro- 
Hungarian Monarchy territories belonging to it, and it sincerely 
deplores the fatal consequences of these criminal proceedings. 

"The Royal Government regrets that Servian officers and 
functionaries participated in the above-mentioned propaganda, 
and thus compromised the good, neighborly relations to which 
the Royal Government was solemnly pledged by its declaration 
of March 31, 1909. The Royal Government, which disapproves 
and repudiates all idea of interfering or attempt to interfere 
with the destinies of the inhabitants of any part whatsoever 
of Austria-Hungary, considers it its duty formally to warn 
officers and functionaries, and the whole population of the 
kingdom, that henceforward it will proceed with the utmost 
rigor against persons who may be guilty of such machinations, 
which it will use all its efforts to anticipate and suppress. ' ' 

This declaration shall simultaneously be communicated to the 
Royal Army as an order of the day by his Majesty the King, 
and shall be published in the official bulletin of the army. 

The Royal Servian Government further undertakes: 

1. To suppress any publications which incite to hatred and 
contempt of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and the general 
tendency of which is directed against its territorial integrity. 

2. To dissolve immediately the society styled Narodna Obrava, 
to confiscate all its means of propaganda, and to proceed in the 
same manner against other societies and their branches in 
Servia which are addicted to propaganda against the Austro- 
Hungarian Monarchy. The Royal Government shall take the 
necessary measures to prevent the societies dissolved from con- 
tinuing their activity under another name and form. 

3. To eliminate without delay from public instruction in 
Servia, not only as regards the teaching body, but also as 



146 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

regards the methods of instruction, everything that serves or 
might serve to foment the propaganda against Austria-Hungary. 

4. To remove from the military service and from the Adminis- 
tration in general all officers and functionaries guilty of propa- 
ganda against the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, whose names 
and deeds the Austro-Hungarian Government reserves to itself 
the right of communicating to the Royal Government. 

5. To accept the collaboration in Servia of representatives of 
the Austro-Hungarian Government in the suppression of the 
subversive movement directed against the territorial integrity 
of the monarchy. 

6. To take judicial proceedings against accessories to the plot 
of June 28, who are on Servian territory. Delegates of the 
Austro-Hungarian Government will take part in the investiga- 
tion relating thereto. 

7. To proceed without delay to the arrest of Major Voija 
Tankositch and of the individual named Milan Ciganovitch, a 
Servian state employe, who have been compromised by the 
results of the Magisterial inquiry at Sarajevo. 

8. To prevent by effective measures the co-operation of the 
Servian authorities in the illicit traffic in arms and explosives 
across the frontier, to dismiss and punish severely officials of 
the frontier service at Achabatz and Loznica, guilty of having 
assisted the perpetrators of the Sarajevo crime by facilitating 
the passage of the frontier for them. 

9. To furnish the Austro-Hungarian Government with expla- 
nations regarding the unjustifiable utterances of high Servian 
officials, both in Servia and abroad, who, notwithstanding their 
official position, did not hesitate, after the crime of June 28, 
to express themselves in interviews in terms of hostility to the 
Austro-Hungarian Government; and finally: 

10. To notify the Austro-Hungarian Government without 
delay of the execution of the measures comprised under the 
preceding heads. 

The Austro-Hungarian Government expects the reply of the 
Servian Government at the latest by 6 o'clock on Saturday 
evening, the 25th of July. 

Austria's circular note 

The circular note sent by Austria-Hungary, July 24, to its 
Embassies in Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, Russia, 
and Turkey, read as follows : 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 147 

The Imperial and Royal Government has felt itself compelled 
to forward on Thursday, the 23d inst., to the Royal Servian 
Government, through its Imperial and Royal Minister in Bel- 
grade, the following note : 

(Here follows the Austro-Hungarian note to Servia.) 

I have the honor to request your Excellency to bring the con- 
tents of this note before the Government to which you are 
accredited, and to accompany this with the following explana- 
tions: On the 31st March, 1909, the Royal Servian govern- 
ment addressed a statement to Austria-Hungary, the text of 
which is repeated above. Almost on the following day Servia 's 
policy took a direction tending to rouse ideas subversive to the 
Austro-Hungarian monarchy in the minds of Servian subjects, 
and thereby to prepare for the detachment of those districts 
of Austria-Hungary which adjoin the Servian frontier. 

A large number of agents are employed in furthering by all 
possible means the agitation against Austria-Hungary to cor- 
rupt the youth of those territories of Austria-Hungary border- 
ing on Servia. The spirit of conspiracy which animates Servian 
political circles, and which has left its bloody traces in the 
history of Servia, has grown since the last Balkan crisis. Mem- 
bers of bands, who up to that time had found occupation in 
Macedonia, have since placed themselves at the disposal of the 
terrorist propaganda against Austria-Hungary. The Servian 
Government has never considered itself obliged to take steps 
of any kind against the intrigues to which Austria-Hungary 
has been exposed for years. 

The patience which the Imperial and Royal Government has 
observed toward the provocative attitude of Servia is to be 
attributed to the fact that she knew herself to be free from all 
territorial interests and to the hope which she did not abandon 
that the Servian Government would eventually prize at its 
worth the friendship of Austria-Hungary. The Imperial and 
Royal Government thought that a benevolent attiude toward 
the political interests of Servia would eventually call for a 
similar attitude from that Kingdom. 

Austria-Hungary expected an evolution of this nature in the 
political ideas of Servia, more especially at the time following 
the events of the year 1912, when the Imperial and Royal Gov- 
ernment, by its disinterested attitude, from any suggestion of 
ill-will, made possible the important extension of Servia. 

The sympathy which Austria-Hungary demonstrated in its 
neighbor nevertheless made no change in the conduct of that 



148 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

Kingdom, which continued to permit on its territory a propa- 
ganda, the lamentable consequences of which were made evident 
to the whole world on June 28 this year, when the Heir 
Apparent of the Dual Monarchy and his illustrious consort fell 
the victims to a plot hatched in Belgrade. 

In view of this state of affairs the Imperial and Royal Gov- 
ernment found itself compelled to take a fresh and energetic 
step in Belgrade, of such a nature as to induce the Servian 
Government to put an end to a movement which threatened the 
security and integrity of Austria-Hungary. The Imperial and 
Royal Government is convinced that in taking this step it is 
acting in complete harmony with the feelings of all civilized 
nations, which cannot agree that royal assassinations can be 
made a weapon to be used unpunished in political struggles, 
and that the peace of Europe may be incessantly disturbed by 
intrigues which emanate from Belgrade. 

In support of these statements, the Imperial and Royal Gov- 
ernment holds at the disposal of the Government to which you 
are accredited a dossier dealing with the Servian propaganda, 
and showing the connection of this propaganda with the 
assassination of June 28. 

servia's reply 

Servia's reply to the Austrian ultimatum of July 23 was 
issued July 25, and embraced the following terms : 

The Royal Servian Government has received the communica- 
tion of the Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Government 
of the 10th of this month, and it is persuaded that its reply will 
remove all misunderstanding tending to threaten or to prejudice 
the friendly and neighborly relations between the Austro-Hun- 
garian Monarchy and the Kingdom of Servia. 

The Royal Government is aware that the protests made both 
at the tribune of the National Skupshtina and in the declara- 
tions and the acts of responsible representatives of the State — 
protests which were cut short by the declaration of the Servian 
Government made on March 18 — have not been renewed towards 
the great neighboring monarchy on any occasion, and that since 
this time, both on the part of the Royal Governments which have 
followed on one another, and on the part of their organs, no 
attempt has been made with the purpose of changing the polit- 
ical and judicial state of things in this respect. 

The Imperial and Royal Government has made no representa- 
tions save concerning a scholastic book regarding which the 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 149 

Imperial and Royal Government has received an entirely satis- 
factory explanation. Servia has repeatedly given proofs of 
her pacific and moderate policy during the Balkan crisis, and it 
is thanks to Servia and the sacrifice she made exclusively in the 
interest of the peace of Europe that this peace has been pre- 
served. The Royal Government cannot be held responsible for 
manifestations of a private nature, such as newspaper articles 
and the peaceful work of societies — manifestations which occur 
in almost all countries as a matter of course, and which, as a 
general rule, escape official control — all the less in that the 
Royal Government, when solving a whole series of questions 
which came up between Servia and Austria-Hungary, has dis- 
played a great readiness to treat (prevenance), and in this way 
succeeded in settling the greater number to the advantage of 
the progress of the two neighboring countries. 

It is for this reason that the Royal Government has been 
painfully surprised by the statements, according to which 
persons of the kingdom of Servia are said to have taken part 
in the preparation of the outrage committed at Sarajevo. It 
expected that it would be invited to collaborate in the investiga- 
tion of everything bearing on this crime, and it was ready to 
prove by its actions its entire correctness to take steps against 
all persons with regard to whom communications had been made 
to it, thus acquiescing in the desire of the Imperial and Royal 
Government. 

The Royal Government is disposed to hand over to the courts 
any Servian subject, without regard to his situation and rank, 
for whose complicity in the crime of Sarajevo it shall have been 
furnished with proofs, and especially engaged itself to have 
published on the front page of the Official Journal of July 13- 
26 the following announcement : 

"The Royal Servian Government condemns all propaganda 
directed against Austria-Hungary, that is to say, all tendencies 
as a whole of which the ultimate object is to detach from the 
Austro-Hungarian monarchy territories which form part of it, 
and it sincerely deplores the fatal consequence of these criminal 
actions. The Royal Government regrets that Servian officers 
and officials should, according to the communication of the 
Imperial and Royal Government, have participated in the above- 
mentioned propaganda, thereby compromising the good neigh- 
borly relations to which the Royal Government solemnly pledged 
itself by its declaration of the 31st March, 1909. The Govern- 
ment, which disapproves and repudiates any idea or attempt to 



150 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

interfere in the destinies of the inhabitants of any part of 
Austria-Hungary whatsoever, considers it its duty to utter a 
formal warning to the officers, the officials, and the whole popu- 
lation of the kingdom that henceforth it will proceed with the 
utmost rigor against persons who render themselves guilty of 
such actions, which it will use all its efforts to prevent and 
repress." 

This announcement shall be brought to the cognizance of the 
Royal Army by an order of the day issued in the name of his 
Majesty the King by H. R. H. the Crown Prince Alexander, 
and shall be published in the next official bulletin of the 
army. 

1. The Royal Government engages itself, furthermore, to lay 
before the next regular meeting of the Skupshtina an amend- 
ment to the press law, punishing in the severest manner incite- 
ments to hate and contempt of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, 
and also all publications of which the general tendency is 
directed against the territorial integrity of the Monarchy. It 
undertakes at the forthcoming revision of the Constitution to 
introduce in Article XXII. of the Constitution an amendment 
whereby the above publications may be confiscated, which is 
at present categorically forbidden by the terms of Article XXII. 
of the Constitution. 

2. The Government does not possess any proof, nor does the 
note of the Imperial and Royal Government furnish such, that 
the society Narodna Obrana and other similar societies have up 
to the present committed any criminal acts of this kind through 
the instrumentality of one of their members. Nevertheless, the 
Royal Government will accept the demand of the Imperial and 
Royal Government and will dissolve the Narodna Obrana 
Society and any other society which shall agitate against 
Austria-Hungary. 

3. The Royal Servian Government engages itself to eliminate 
without delay for public instruction in Servia everything which 
aids or might aid in fomenting the propaganda against Austro- 
Hungary when the Imperial and Royal Government furnishes 
facts and proofs of this propaganda. 

4. The Royal Government also agrees to remove from the 
military service (all persons) whom the judicial inquiry proves 
to have been guilty of acts directed against the integrity of the 
territory of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, and it expects 
the Imperial and Royal Government to communicate at an 
ulterior date the names and the deeds of these officers and 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 151 

officials, for the purpose of the proceedings which will have 
to be taken. 

5. The Royal Government must confess that it is not quite 
clear as to the sense and object of the demands of the Imperial 
and Royal Government that Servia should undertake to accept 
on her territory the collaboration of delegates of the Imperial 
and Royal Government, but it declares that it will admit what- 
ever collaboration which may be in accord with the principles 
of international law and criminal procedure, as well as with 
good neighborly relations. 

6. The Royal Government, as goes without saying, considers 
it to be its duty to open an inquiry against all those who are, or 
shall eventually prove to have been, involved in the plot of June 
28, and who are in Servian territory. As to the participation 
at this investigation of agents of the Austro-Hungarian author- 
ities delegated for this purpose by the Imperial and Royal Gov- 
ernment, the Royal Government cannot accept this demand, for 
it would be a violation of the constitution and of the law of 
criminal procedure. Nevertheless, in concrete cases it might be 
found possible to communicate the results of the investigation in 
question to the Austro-Hungarian representatives. 

7. On the very evening that the note was handed in the Royal 
Government arrested Major Voija Tankositch. As for Milan 
Ciganovitch, who is a subject of the Austro-Hungarian 
monarchy, and who, until June 15 was employed as a beginner 
in the administration of the railways, it has not yet been pos- 
sible to (arrest) him. In view of the ultimate inquiry the 
Imperial and Royal Government is requested to have the good- 
ness to communicate in the usual form as soon as possible the 
presumptions of guilt as well as the eventual proofs of guilt 
against these persons which have been collected up to the present 
in the investigations at Sarajevo. 

8. The Servian Government will strengthen and extend the 
measures taken to prevent the illicit traffic of arms and 
explosives across the frontier. It goes without saying that it 
will immediately order an investigation, and will severely punish 
the frontier officials along the line Schabatz-Losnitza who have 
been lacking in their duties and who allowed the authors of 
the crime of Sarajevo to pass. 

9. The Royal Government will willingly give explanations 
regarding the remarks made in interviews by its officials, both 
in Servia and abroad, after the attempt, and which, according 
to the statement of the Imperial and Royal Government, were 



152 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

hostile toward the monarchy, as soon as the Imperial and Royal 
Government has (forwarded) it the passages in question of 
these remarks and as soon as it has shown that the remarks made 
were in reality made by the officials regarding whom the Royal 
Government itself will see about collecting proofs. 

10. The Royal Government will inform the Imperial and 
Royal Government of the execution of the measures comprised 
in the preceding points, in as far as that has not already been 
done by the present note, as soon as each measure has been 
ordered and executed. 

In the event of the Imperial and Royal Government not being 
satisfied with this reply, the Royal Servian Government, con- 
sidering that it is to the common interest not to precipitate the 
solution of this question, is ready, as always, to accept a pacific 
understanding, either by referring this question to the decision 
of The Hague International Tribunal or to the great powers 
which took part in the drawing up of the declaration made by 
the Servian Government on the 18-31 March, 1909. 

The Austro-Hungarian Foreign Office on July 27 denounced 
Servia 's reply in the following note : 

The object of the Servian note is to create the false impression 
that the Servian Government is prepared in great measure to 
comply with our demands. 

As a matter of fact, however, Servia 's note is filled with the 
spirit of dishonesty, which clearly lets it be seen that the 
Servian Government is not seriously determined to put an end 
to the culpable tolerance it hitherto has extended to intrigues 
against the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. 

The Servian note contains such far-reaching reservations and 
limitations not only regarding the general principles of our 
action, but also in regard to the individual claims we have put 
forward that the concessions actually made by Servia become 
insignificant. 

In particular our demand for the participation of the Austro- 
Hungarian authorities in investigations to detect accomplices in 
the conspiracy on Servian territory has been rejected, while 
our request that measures be taken against that section of the 
Servian press hostile to Austria-Hungary has been declined, and 
our wish that the Servian Government take the necessary meas- 
ures to prevent the dissolved Austrophobe associations continu- 
ing their activity under another name and under another form 
has not even been considered. 




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One of the round towers that protect the wall of ancient Nuremburg 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 153 

Since the claims in the Austro-Hungarian note of July 23, 
regard being had to the attitude hitherto adopted by Servia, 
represent the minimum of what is necessary for the establish- 
ment of permanent peace with the Southeastern monarchy, the 
Servian answer must be regarded as unsatisfactory. 

That the Servian Government itself is conscious that its note 
is not acceptable to us is proved by the circumstance that it 
proposes at the end of the note to submit the dispute to arbitra- 
tion — an invitation which is thrown into its proper light by the 
fact that three hours before handing in the note, a few minutes 
before the expiration of the time limit, the mobilization of the 
Servian Army took place. 

The text of the Austro-Hungarian declaration of war against 
Servia, issued July 28, runs as follows : 

The Royal Government of Servia not having replied in a satis- 
, factory manner to the note remitted to it by the Austro-Hun- 
garian Minister in Belgrade on July 23, 1914, the Imperial and 
Royal Government finds itself compelled to proceed to safeguard 
its rights and interests and to have recourse for this purpose to 
force of arms. 

Austria-Hungary considers itself, therefore, from this moment 
in a state of war with Servia. 

Count Berchtold, 
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Austria-Hungary. 

The Russian note announcing its wish to maintain peace, 
issued July 28, reads: 

Numerous patriotic demonstrations of the last few days in 
St. Petersburg and other cities prove that the firm pacific policy 
of Russia finds a sympathetic echo among all classes of the 
population. 

The Government hopes, nevertheless, that the expression of 
feeling of the people will not be tinged with enmity against the 
powers with whom Russia is at peace, and "with whom she wishes 
to remain at peace. 

While the Government gathers strength from this wave of 
popular feeling and expects its subjects to retain their reticence 
and tranquillity, it rests confidently on the guardianship of the 
dignity and the interests of Russia. 

The personal messages exchanged between the Czar and Kaiser 
on July 31 read, according to the German "White Book, as fol- 
lows, beginning with the Czar's telegram: 



154 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

I thank thee from my heart, for thy mediation, which leaves 
a gleam of hope that even now all may end peacefully. It is 
technically impossible to discontinue our military operation, 
which has been rendered necessary by Austrian mobilization. 
We are far from wishing for war, and so long as negotiations 
with Austria regarding Servia continue my troops will not 
undertake any provocative action. 

I give thee my word upon it, and I trust with my strength in 
God, grace and hope for the success of the mediation at Vienna, 
and for our countries' peace and the peace of Europe. 

Thy devoted, 

Nicholas. 

To this the German Emperor replied: 

In answer to thy appeal to my friendship and thy prayer for 
my help, I undertook mediatory action between the Austro-« 
Hungarian Government and thine. While this action was in 
progress thy troops were mobilized against my ally, Austria- 
Hungary, in consequence of which, as I have already informed 
thee, my mediation was rendered nearly illusory. Nevertheless, 
it continued. But now I am in possession of trustworthy advices 
concerning the serious war preparations on my eastern frontier 
as well. 

My responsibility for the safety of my empire compels me to 
counter-measures of defense. In my endeavors for the mainte- 
nance of the peace of the world I have gone to the extreme limit 
of the possible. It is not I that shall bear the responsibility for 
.the peril which now threatens the civilized world. I lay it to thy 
hand to avert it, even at this moment. 

No one menaces the honor and might of Russia, which well 
could have waited upon the result of my mediation. The friend- 
ship for thee and thy empire bequeathed to me by my grand- 
father on his deathbed has always been sacred to me,, and I have 
remained true to Russia when it was in grave distress, especially 
in your last war. The peace of Europe can yet be conserved by 
thee if Russia decides to discontinue her military measures which 
threaten Germany and Austria-Hungary. 

Germany's sharp note 

The full text of the telegram sent August 1 by the German 
Chancellor to the German Embassy at Vienna asking for more 
light on Austria-Hungary's plans reads: 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 155 

The report of Count von Pourtales, German Ambassador at 
St. Petersburg, does not harmonize with the account your 
Excellency has given of the attitude of the Austro-Hungarian 
Government. Apparently, there is a misunderstanding, which I 
beg you to clear up. 

We cannot expect Austria-Hungary to negotiate with Servia, 
with whom she is in a state of war. The refusal, however, to 
exchange views with St. Petersburg would be a grave mistake. 

We are indeed ready to fulfill our duty as ally. We must, 
however, refuse to be drawn into a world conflagration owing to 
Austria-Hungary not respecting our advice. 

Your excellency will express this to Count von Berchtold, 
Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister, with all emphasis and 
great seriousness. 

Von Bethmann Hollweg. 

In replying to this note Count von Berchtold, the Austro- 
Hungarian Foreign Secretary, informed the German Ambas- 
sador that his Government's negotiations with St. Petersburg 
had ceased when Russia had mobilized. 

RUSSIAN PROCLAMATION 

The Russian Emperor, with Grand Duke Nicholas, on August 
8, received the members of the Council of the Empire and the 
Duma in audience at the Winter Palace. Addressing them, the 
Emperor said: 

"In these days of alarm and anxiety through which Russia is 
passing, I greet you ! Germany, following Austria, has declared 
war on Russia. 

"The enormous enthusiasm, the patriotic sentiments and the 
love and loyalty to the throne — an enthusiasm which has swept 
like a hurricane through the country — guarantee for me, as for 
you, I hope, that Russia will bring to a happy conclusion the 
war which the Almighty has sent it. 

"It is also because of this unanimous enthusiasm, love and 
eagerness to make every sacrifice, even of life itself, that I am 
able to regard the future with calm firmness. It is not only the 
dignity and honor of our country that we are defending, but we 
are fighting for brother Slavs, co-religionists, blood brothers. 



156 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

I see also with joy the union of the Slavs with Russia progressing 
strongly and indissolubly. 

"lam persuaded that all and each of you will be in your place 
to assist me to support the test and that all, beginning with 
myself, will do their duty. 

"Great is the God of the Russian fatherland." 

THE RUSSIAN PROMISE FOR A REUNITED POLAND 

Grand Duke Nicholas, commander-in-chief of the Russian 
army, addressed a manifesto to Poland, August 15, appealing for 
the loyalty of the Poles and promising them autonomy in return. 
The manifesto reads : 

' ' The hour has sounded when the sacred dream of your fathers 
may be realized. A hundred and fifty years ago the living body 
of Poland was torn to pieces, but her soul survived, and she 
lived in hope that for the Polish people would come an hour of 
regeneration and reconciliation with Russia. 

' ' The Russian army brings you the solemn news of this recon- 
ciliation, which effaces the frontiers severing the Polish people, 
whom it unites conjointly under the sceptre of the Czar of Russia. 
Under this sceptre Poland will be born again, free in her 
religion, her language and autonomous. 

"Russia expects from you only the loyalty to which history 
has bound you. With open heart and a brotherly hand extended, 
great Russia comes to meet you. She believes that the sword 
which struck her enemies at Griinewald is not yet rusted. 

"Russia, from the shores of the Pacific Ocean to the North 
Sea, marches in arms. The dawn of a new life commences for 
you. In this glorious dawn is seen the sign of the Cross — the 
symbol of suffering and the resurrection of a people." 

japan's ultimatum 

Japan sent an ultimatum to Germany Saturday night, August 
15, at 8 o'clock, demanding the withdrawal of the German war- 
ships from the Orient and the evacuation of Kiaochau and giving 
Germany until Sunday, August 23, to comply with the demand 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 157 

and until September 15 in which actually to carry out the 
evacuation. Otherwise, the ultimatum states, Japan will take 
action. 

The general expectation here is that the ultimatum will be 
followed by war. 

Takaaki Kato, the Japanese Foreign Minister, simultaneously 
with the despatch of the ultimatum, conferred with George W. 
Guthrie, the American Ambassador, and made to him a broad 
statement calculated to assure the United States that American 
interests in the Far East would be safeguarded and the integrity 
of China upheld. 

Owing to doubts whether communication with Berlin was 
assured, Japan in order to insure the arrival of the ultimatum 
forwarded it to Berlin by six channels, including "Washington, 
London and Stockholm. The Government also notified Count 
von Rex, German Ambassador to Japan. 

Count Okuma, the Japanese Premier, invited the Peers, the 
newspaper men and the leading business men of Tokio to come 
to his office at noon, 4 o'clock and at 6 o'clock in the afternoon, 
respectively, when he made known to them the terms of the 
ultimatum and announced that he would give out the negotia- 
tions in connection with the alliance. 

TEXT OF JAPAN'S ULTIMATUM TO GERMANY 

The ultimatum is as follows : 

"We consider it highly important and necessary in the pres- 
ent situation to take measures to remove the causes of all dis- 
turbances of the peace in the Far East, and to safeguard the 
general interests as contemplated by the agreement of alliance 
between Japan and Great Britain. 

"In order to secure a firm and enduring peace in Eastern 
Asia, the establishment of which is the aim of the said agreement, 
the Imperial Japanese Government sincerely believes it to be its 
duty to give the advice to the Imperial German Government to 
carry out the following two propositions: 



158 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

"First — To withdraw immediately from Japanese and Chi- 
nese waters German men-of-war and armed vessels of all kinds, 
and to disarm at once those which cannot be so withdrawn. 

"Second — To deliver on a date not later than September 15 
to the Imperial Japanese authorities, without condition or com- 
pensation, the entire leased territory of Kiaochou, with a view 
to the eventual restoration of the same to China. 

"The Imperial Japanese Government announces at the same 
time that in the event of it not receiving by noon on August 23, 
1914, an answer from the Imperial German Government signi- 
fying its unconditional, acceptance of the above advice offered 
by the Imperial Japanese Government, Japan will be compelled 
to take such action as she may deem necessary to meet the 
situation." 

BASES DEMAND ON GERMANY'S ACTIVITIES 

Inspired utterances express regret at the inability to maintain 
neutrality, but say that Great Britain, the ally of Japan, is com- 
pelled to defend herself against the aggressions of Germany. 

Tokio, Aug. 23. — The declaration of war against Germany 
bears the title "Imperial Rescript" and reads as follows: 

We, by the grace of heaven, Emperor of Japan, seated on the 
throne occupied by the same dynasty from time immemorial, 
do hereby make the following proclamation to all our loyal and 
brave subjects: 

We hereby declare war against Germany, and we command 
our army and navy to carry on hostilities against that empire 
with all their strength, and we also command all our competent 
authorities to make every effort in pursuance of their respective 
duties to attain the national aim by all means within the limits 
of the law of nations. 

Since the outbreak of the present war in Europe, the calami- 
tous effects of which we view with grave concern, we on our part 
have entertained hopes of preserving the peace of the Far East 
by the maintenance of strict neutrality, but the action of Ger- 
many has at length compelled Great Britain, our ally, to open 
hostilities against that country and Germany is at Kiauchau. its 
leased territory in China, busy with warlike preparations, while 
its armed vessels, cruising the seas of eastern Asia, are threat- 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 159 

ening our commerce and that of our ally. Peace of the Far East 
is thus in jeopardy. 

Accordingly our government and that of his Britannic 
majesty, after full and frank communication with each other, 
agreed to take such measures as may be necessary for the protec- 
tion of the general interests contemplated in the agreement of 
alliance, and we, on our part being desirous to obtain that object 
by peaceful means, commanded our government to offer with 
sincerity an advice to the imperial German government. 

By the last day appointed for the purpose, however, our gov- 
ernment failed to receive an answer accepting their advice. It 
is with profound regret that we, in spite of our ardent devotion 
to the cause of peace, are thus compelled to declare war, espe- 
cially at this early period of our reign and while we are still in 
mourning for our lamented mother. 

It is our earnest wish that by the loyalty and valor of our 
faithful subjects a peace may soon be restored and the glory of 
the empire be enhanced. 

JAPAN'S PROMISE TO AMERICA 

Germany has violated her agreement to help keep the peace 
in the Far East, as she has violated her agreement as to the 
neutrality of Belgium. If Germany is forced to give up 
Kiauchau it will not mean that other nations will be asked to 
give up their concessions in China or that the open door policy 
Will be changed. Japan will not move against the Philippines, 
Samoa, Guam, Hawaii or any other American possessions. Our 
premier stopped some Japanese papers that started to talk about 
America coming into the Far East to get more possessions." 

ENGLISH STATEMENT 

The official press bureau gave out, August 18, the following 
statement : 

"Great Britain and Japan, having been in communication 
with each other, are of the opinion that it is necessary that each 
shall take action to protect its general interests in the Far East 
as contemplated by the Anglo-Japanese alliance, keeping espe- 
cially in view the independence and integrity of China as pro- 
vided for in the agreement. 



160 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

"It is understood that the action of Japan will not extend to 
the Pacific Ocean beyond the China Sea, nor on foreign territory 
except territory in German occupation on the continent of 

Eastern Asia." 



KITCHENER S INSTRUCTIONS TO HIS SOLDIERS ON THEIR DEPARTURE 

FOR PRANCE 

Every soldier of the British expeditionary force was given, 
August 15, the following instructions from Field Marshal Earl 
Kitchener with directions to keep it in his active service pay 
hook : 

You are ordered abroad as a soldier of the king to help our 
French comrades against the invasion of a common enemy. 

You have to perform a task which will need your courage, 
your energy and your patience. 

Remember that the honor of the British army depends on your 
individual conduct. 

It will be your duty, not only to set an example of discipline 
and perfect steadiness under fire, but also to maintain the most 
friendly relations with those whom you are helping in this 
struggle. 

The operations in which you will be engaged will for the most 
part take place in a friendly country, and you can do your own 
country no better service than by showing yourself in France 
and Belgium in the true character of a British soldier by being 
invariably courteous, considerate and kind. 

Never do anj^thing likely to injure or destroy property and 
always look upon rioting as a disgraceful act. 

You are sure to meet with a welcome and to be trusted. Your 
conduct must justify that welcome and that trust. 

Your duty cannot be done unless your health is sound, so keep 
constantly on your guard against any excesses. 

In this new experience you may find temptation both in wine 
and women. You must entirely resist both temptations and, 



DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 161 

while treating all women with perfect courtesy, you should avoid 
any intimacy. 

Do your trust bravely. Fear God and honor the king. 

Kitchener, Field Marshal. 

England's recognition of Belgium's heroic defense 

M. de Brouquille, the Prime Minister of Belgium, received, 
August 14, 1914, from Prime Minister Asquith of Great Britain 
the following letter: 

I hasten to make known to you the admiration which I feel 
for the magnificent courage and energy of which the Belgian 
nation, its King, its Government and its army are giving proof. 

The sufferings which they are undergoing evoke my pro- 
foundest sympathy. The gallantry of the Belgians, the intrepid- 
ity with which they are defending themselves, show how intense 
is their love of independence and liberty, which is the best proof 
that England was right in taking sides in Belgium and defending 
the international treaty. 

The example which Belgium has given at the opening of this 
war will, I am sure, be a pattern to the free nations of Europe. 

PLEDGES BELGIAN FREEDOM 

A statement issued by the French government 
says: 

"Despite the entry of the Germans into Brussels, 
France is resolved to free the territory of her ally, 
and she will not consider the task accomplished until 
every German soldier has been driven from Belgian 
soil. 

"The news of the occupation of Brussels is sad to 
Frenchmen even as it is to Belgians. Our obligations 
have become only the more solemn, and our co-opera- 
tion will become the greater. 



162 DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENTS 

' ' The retreat of the Belgian army was a maneuver 
to be expected; it affects neither the worth nor the 
uncontestable strength of the Belgian fighting force." 

August 22 the French War Office issued the follow- 
ing statement : 

"The last French soldier and the last French 
money will be used to protect Belgium, and no 
Frenchman will abate his efforts while a single Ger- 
man remains on Belgian soil. France is mindful of 
Belgium's aid. She has no intention of abandoning 
her ally. Nothing is to be left undone to free Bel- 
gium from German oppression. The German forces 
will be driven from Belgium as soon as the French 
military forces are fully in action." 



THE GEEAT TEST TO AMERICAN 
DIPLOMACY 

AMERICA SURROUNDED BY WAR 

Now the United States is completely surrounded 
by the potential battlefields — on land and water — of 
all the world. The action of Japan in forcing the 
attention of the distracted powers to the interna- 
tional tangle of interests along the east coast of Asia 
threatened to fill the Pacific ocean with war as the 
Atlantic already was filled. 

On the north, Canada is mobilizing in conformity 
with her British relationship ; on the south, Mexico 
is writing the final chapter — ostensibly final — in her 
latest revolution ; on the east, Europe flames ; and on 
the west, the Mikado has prepared for war — pre- 
pared for it and invited it. 

The German possessions at Kiau-chau are worth 
many millions of dollars as mere property ; as a stra- 
tegic base they are of almost incalculable value to 
Germany ; and to the Mikado, to make him supreme 
in the Orient, they are nothing less than essential. 

The United States is interested in the preservation 
of a balance of power in the Pacific. The United 
States owns the Philippines and the " stepping- 
stone" islands leading across the Pacific — Hawaii, 
Guam, and part of Samoa. 

Great Britain and Germany also have many inter- 

163 " 



164 GKEAT TEST OF AMERICAN DIPLOMACY 

ests in the far East waters. But Japan assures the 
world that she seeks only to drive Germany out of 
Chinese waters — "for the benefit of the Chinese." 
President Wilson said that he believes Japan's as- 
surances are offered in good faith. 

THE STABILITY OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT 

The great test of American diplomacy is at hand. 
America will be the glorious isle of refuge for many 
generations from the storming oceans of humanity. 
It will be an oasis of life in the midst of desolated 
and desert lands. Each must be a master to keep the 
peace and guide the destinies of Freedom. 

We alone must remain clear on the awful cost of 
war. We must continue conscious of what it costs 
the earth to kill a man in military despotism. 

COST OF THE WAR 

Before hostilities broke out, a French economist, 
Charles Richet, made an estimate of the money cost 
of the Avar if it should materialize. He based his 
calculations on the supposition that Germany and 
Austria, with Italy possibly helping them, would 
have to fight England, France, Russia and Servia. 
He counted that this war would call armies into the 
field amounting to 20,000,000 men. The estimate was 
quite conservative. The German army on a peace 
basis numbers 870,000 men, that of France 720,000, 
Russia 1,290,000, Austria-Hungary 390,000, Italy 
250,000, Great Britain 254,500, and Servia 32,000. 
The reserves, which were all called out, number three 



GREAT TEST OF AMERICAN DIPLOMACY 165 

or four times the peace strength of the different coun- 
tries. The total war strength of Germany is 5,200,- 
000, France 4,000,000, Russia 5,500,000, Austria- 
Hungary 2,000,000, Italy 1,200,000, Great Britain 
730,000, Servia 240,000. Belgium, not estimated at 
all by Mr. Richet, has a peace strength of 42,000 men 
and a total war strength of 222,000. 

For the provisioning of these troops the daily ex- 
pense will be (Belgium excluded) $12,500,000; feed 
for horses, $1,000,000 ; soldiers' pay, $4,250,000 ; sala- 
ries at arsenals and ports, $1,000,000; transporting 
of foods, arms, etc., $4,000,000 ; movement of troops, 
$2,000,000; ammunition, infantry, $4,000,000; artil- 
lery, $1,250,000; navy, $375,000; equipment, $4,000,- 
000; ambulance, $500,000; distribution of ships, 
$500,000. Add to this the deficit in receipts from im- 
ports, $10,000,000 ; help for people without resources, 
$6,750,000; destruction of cities and bridges, $2,000,- 
000; total expenditure, $54,125,000 a day. 

WHAT IT COSTS TO KILL A MAN 

The cost of killing a man is obtained by dividing 
the total cost of a war to any of the belligerents by 
the number of men killed on the other side. 

In 1870-1871 France spent $400,000,000 in the ac- 
tual expenses of the war. Repairing materials and 
giving succor to the victims of the war, expenses that 
are justly to be added, cost another $200,000,000. 
France paid $1,000,000,000 as war indemnity, plus 
another $400,000,000 in interest on the sum, loss of 
revenue, forced contribution by the enemy, and up- 



166 GREAT TEST OF AMERICAN DIPLOMACY 

keep of the German army of occupation. This third 
category of expenses, not being inevitable in all wars, 
cannot properly be included. 

On a similar basis here are some facts about other 
wars : 

Russo-Turkish war (1877-1878)— Turkey, $400,- 
000,000. 

Russo-Japanese war (1905) — Russia, $1,200,- 
000,000. 

The number of men killed or who died of wounds 
in these wars were : 

Franco-Prussian war — Germans, 28,600. 

Russo-Turkish war — Russians, 16,600. 

Russo-Japanese war — Japanese, 58,600. 

Whence it results that the cost of killing each man 
was as follows : 

In 1870-1871, $21,000. 
In 1877-1878, $15,000. 
In 1905, $20,400. 

What will kill the greatest number and reduce the 
effective force most will be not the rifle or cannon 
but fatigue, typhus or cholera. 

In 1870, 380,000 Germans entered the hospitals. 
Although they did not die of their illnesses, they were 
none the less made useless for a certain time. In the 
Crimean war the allied armies lost four times as 
many men through disease as were killed in battle. 
This proportion was 3 to 1 among the Russians in 
1877-1878 ; it was only 1 to 2 among the Japanese in 
Manchuria, thanks to their excellent hygiene. 



RED CROSS SOCIETY 

THE RED CROSS NURSE 

Now is your mission come with war's disaster, 

In fields a-drip where Peace should fold her wings; 

For you shall wander where red Mars is master, 
Where bullets hiss and shrieking shrapnel sings. 

There with deft hands, your woman 's tears withholding, 
You stop the ebbing of the patriot's life, 

Or you may close his longing eyes, beholding 
In you the angel of the hateful strife. 

Now 'neath the tent-roof over which is flying 
In solemn mockery, the flag that holds at bay 

Bullet and shell — your very self denying — 

You watch and work, and hope, and dumbly pray. 

You 've stanched the tears that flow at life 's beginning — 

Yours now to still them at its early end ; 
Yours, too, to catch, the while the ranks are thinning, 

Some final word to mother, sweetheart, friend. 

You have a mission while the cave-man lingers, 
While to his maddened vision there remains 

Only the club he clutches in his fingers, 
Only the stone to win his childish gains. 

— Samuel M. Brickner. 

SWITZERLAND AS A WAR HOSPITAL 

The offer to make Switzerland hospital territory 
for the wounded combatants of all nations is one of 
the bright spots in the awful prospect in Europe. 
Nothing could be more appropriate than that the 

167 



168 THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 

country which gave origin to the Bed Cross move- 
ment should now furnish refuge for the host of 
wounded of what it is to be hoped will be Europe's 
last great war. 

Under these circumstances the neutrality of the 
little republic which has so long maintained itself 
in the midst of the monarchies of Europe, in spite of 
wars all round it, should be respected. Much more 
of good can be accomplished not only for humanity 
but for the citizens of each of the particular countries 
at war, by the acceptance of this offer on the part of 
Switzerland and the guarantee of her neutralitv than 
any possible benefit that might accrue from violation 
of her territory and disturbance of the peace that 
alone would permit of proper care for the wounded. 

The situation in Switzerland and the training of 
the Swiss in providing and caring for hosts of stran- 
gers that have always come to them will then prove 
an admirable preparation for the services to human- 
ity that they can render so much better than others.^ 

amebica's paet 

The American people can take part in this war. 
They will take part in it. An American ship, under 
the command of Admiral Aaron Ward, retired, will 
sail for the scene of bloodshed with a force of 150 
surgeons and trained nurses and with great stores of 
medical and surgical supplies. It will fly the Ameri- 
can flag and the flag of the Red Cross ; and wherever 
the two flags come in sight they will be recognized 
by the people of the warring countries as the emblem 




Copyright by Vndenvood it Underwood, .Y. Y., 191!, 

Two of the most unique automobile inventions. The upper one shows 
the latest addition to the transportation facilities of the French army, 
and is called the "Flying Auto." The bottom photo shows the "Flying 
Bob," or a glider that shoots on the snows by the aid of a propeller 
attached to the front 




O c* 



THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 169 

of the only nation taking part in the war whose part 
is that of pity, healing and good will. 

The eight nations that are tearing each other to 
pieces have raised enormous funds for the financing 
of their war. Let the ninth and only peaceful partici- 
pant freely and generously finance its own participa- 
tion. Let the two flags of peace be remembered in 
Europe when the war is over as Ireland still remem- 
bers the ship we sent her in the days of the great 
famine. It will take money and much of it to carry 
out worthily this noble enterprise of the American 
Hed Cross. In the raising of that money every one 
of us can do his share. It is the only way in which 
Americans can show practically the deep feeling 
which the European tragedy has roused among them. 

DOGS FOR THE EED CROSS 

Major Richardson, the famous trainer of dogs for 
police, sentry and ambulance work, left England on 
August 11 for Belgium and took with him a number 
of bloodhounds specially trained for ambulance pur- 
poses. Mr. Richardson is going with members of the 
British Red Cross and the dogs will help search for 
the wounded of the allied armies on the battlefield. 
Dogs are specially valuable in rocky places or where 
the ground is covered with bushes and undergrowth. 
They are also particularly serviceable in scenting out 
patients who might otherwise be overlooked by the 
field hospital brigade. 

The French army is especially well provided with 
ambulance dogs trained to a very high pitch. Ger- 



170 THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 

many has several thousand dogs trained for ambu- 
lance and sentry work, and in mobilization all these 
are carefully provided for. 

THAT GEAVES MAY NOT BE NAMELESS 

What war means is grimly brought out and empha- 
sized by a line in one of the dispatches referring to 
the little metallic disk worn by all the soldiers in one 
of the forces, bearing his name and regimental and 
company designation. The object of it is that after 
battle there may be no unidentified dead, and as a 
man slips the cord bearing one of these disks around 
his neck it would be excusable for him to feel a little 
chill as he realizes its only utility. 

RANK AND FILE 

O Undistinguished Dead! 
"Whom the bent covers, or the rock-strewn steep 
Shows to the stars, for you I mourn — I weep, 

Undistinguished Dead! 

None knows your name. 
Blackened and blurred in the wild battle's brunt, 
Hotly you fell . . . Avith all your wounds in front : — 

This is your fame! 

— Austin Dob son. 

STUPENDOUS WORK OF AEMY SURGEONS 

The eyes of the medical and surgical world are 
fixed on the awful problems involved in properly car- 
ing for the immense number of wounded that will 
shortly have to be removed from the battlefields of 



THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 171 

Europe. We have perfected the means of killing and 
wounding men until scarcely more could possibly be 
expected. Machine guns of all kinds can mow sol- 
diers down by the hundreds and thousands, but each 
of these when not killed has to be cared for individ- 
ually, and we cannot cure by machinery, nor in large 
numbers, but each individual case will require expert 
care and the special consideration of trained minds 
and hands. 

The new arms and new bullets have added to the 
destructiveness of war but have multiplied the sur- 
geons' problems and have made military surgery a 
special study for which, fortunately for humanity, 
there is not much experience provided, although un- 
fortunately for those who have to be treated right 
now the surgeons will have to do their best under 
pressure from time and the number of their patients 
and conditions that are little suited for scientific 
surgery. 

BELGIAN SURGEON'S RESEARCHES 

Professor Octave Laurent, who spent eleven 
months campaigning with the Bulgarian armies 
during the recent war in the Balkans, has just pub- 
lished the story of his surgical experiences, and from 
this some idea of the grewsome work before the mili- 
tary surgeons of Europe can be obtained, although 
probably even this fails to give any adequate notion 
of the surgical experiences that will be forced upon 
the army surgeons. Professor Laurent declares that 
ordinary civil surgery furnishes no real training for 



172 THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 

modern military surgery and that the surgeon must 
literally train himself and do the best that he can. 
The wounds inflicted by modern bullets are quite 
different from those that have been so carefully 
studied and so much written about in the past, and 
only his knowledge of the general principles of sur- 
gery and his own common sense and power to meet 
emergencies of all kinds will be helpful to the surgeon 
in the unusual conditions that present themselves. 

As Professor Laurent himself is a well-known 
professor of surgery and the author of a text-book 
on the subject which has gone through three editions 
and which has been translated into several modern 
languages, his opinions on this subject are well 
worthy of consideration. His experiences have been 
presented to French medical societies, and his obser- 
vations have been the subject of serious discussion 
that has always recognized the value of his work. 
He is the surgeon to the hospital of St. John at Brus- 
sels, and his Balkan experience will now be of the 
greatest value for his countrymen in the war which 
has been so suddenly thrust on them, although, when 
his book on the campaign in Bulgaria was issued, a 
few weeks ago, there seemed to be no sign at all that 
Belgian surgeons would so soon have to know every- 
thing available with regard to the wounds of modern 
warfare. 

There is no doubt that there will be a vast number 
of wounded to care for. The experience in the Bal- 
kans was that there were about four wounded for 
every soldier killed. The wounds are usually inflicted 



THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 173 

by the ordinary infantry arm, while most of the dead 
are killed by the artillery. About three out of four 
soldiers wounded by the infantry survive. Nearly 
three out of four of those wounded by the artillery 
have fatal wounds inflicted. 

FATAL WOUNDS FROM ARTILLERY 

More than one-half of the fatal injuries in the Bal- 
kan campaign came from the artillery. Out of one 
hundred killed and wounded twelve would be killed 
by shrapnel, fifteen to twenty wounded by shrapnel, 
eight killed by the infantry and some sixty to sixty- 
five wounded. According to the old proverb, it still 
takes, in spite of the modern training of soldiers — at 
least so far as the experience in the Balkans went — a 
man's weight in lead to kill him. Many millions -of 
balls were fired for the thousands wounded and killed. 

Modern high velocity projectiles make very differ- 
ent wounds from the old musket balls, and even very 
different surgical lesions from those that were seen 
during the Franco-Prussian war or even the Russian- 
Turkish war in 1876. The modern bullet, with very 
high initial velocity, produces certain serious conse- 
quences never seen before. Its power for harm is 
simply enormous. The average ball from one of the 
new modern rifles will at 600 meters distance — that 
is, nearly two-fifths of a mile — pass through three 
men. It will penetrate a single man at distance of 
1,500 meters — that is nearly a mile. At more than a 
mile it will pass through the skull, making clean 
wounds of entrance and exit in both bony plates. It 



174 THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 

can produce a serious, even a fatal, wound of the ab- 
dominal region at a distance of 3,500 meters — that is 
considerably more than two miles. Fortunately, 
owing to the circumstances of modern war, it is usu- 
ally at these rather long distances that the wounds 
are produced. When the combatants are at shorter 
range the effects are often awful to contemplate. 

INJUBIES OF GREAT EXTENT 

The awful penetrating power of the modern bullet 
will be very well realized from some of the incidents 
described by Professor Laurent in his account of the 
surgery of the Bulgarian campaigns. In cases where 
soldiers, in order to protect themselves from the 
enemy's volleys, were directed to lie down, some of 
them were wounded in the shoulders and the wounds 
of exit for the bullets were often below the knees in 
the legs. In spite of the long course of such a wound, 
important organs and the internal viscera were some- 
times found to have been spared or practically so, 
and some of those thus wounded recovered com- 
pletely. Such a wound has been known to remain 
aseptic and to heal promptly, permitting the soldier 
to go back to duty in the course of a few weeks. 

The higher the velocity of the bullet, the greater 
the injury produced. From 300 to 500 meters — that 
is, at distances of from 1,000 feet to a little more than 
a quarter of a mile — the explosive effects of the mod- 
ern bullet are noted. The lead projectile covered 
with the steel casing when its velocity suddenly tends 
to be arrested takes on an explosive action, which 



THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 175 

tears soft tissues to pieces and comminutes bones. 
The lead itself actually seems almost to be melted at 
times in this process, and is scattered through neigh- 
boring tissues in a rather finely divided state. 

LESIONS DIFFICULT TO HEAL 

Almost needless to say, such wounds are extremely 
difficult to heal. They take a long time for the tis- 
sues to recover from the intense shock to which they 
have been subjected, and in the meantime they fur- 
nish many opportunities for the invasion of infec- 
tious elements of any kind that may happen to be 
present in the neighborhood. The wounds are seldom 
infected at the moment they are made, but infection 
occurs afterward and is often very serious, if not 
fatal. 

The explosive manifestations of a modern bullet 
at short range make sad havoc, particularly in wounds 
of the head made in the course of storming opera- 
tions in which the defenders were wounded as they 
put their heads for a moment above the upper edge 
of the fortifications. As the storming party was only 
some five hundred feet away when the wounds were 
inflicted, the effect was almost incredibly severe. 

Portions of the cranium were blown away entirely, 
and there was sometimes almost absolute emptying 
of the skull cavity of its brain substance. The brain 
itself actually seemed to blow up by a sort of hydro- 
dynamic action and be scattered entirely outside the 
cranium. In these cases the wound of entrance was 
at the base of the cranium, and for such destructive 



176 THE RED CROSS SOCIETY 

effects the distance from which it was inflicted must 
be very short. The storming of redoubts and forts 
has taken on this new danger as a consequence of the 
improvements in armaments. 



AMERICAN GAMBLERS IN FOOD SUPPLIES 

Those Who Corner Food Markets 

Those who corner food in the nations of Europe 
that are at war are treated as public enemies. In 
Germany, Austria and Russia, in extreme cases, 
government has seized all supplies, just as in this 
country a thousand times government has appro- 
priated lands by right of eminent domain. Even in 
England government is fixing the price of food. A 
nation at war that can be starved at home by specu- 
lators is defeated before it fights. 

Our gamblers and extortioners are attempting to 
apply to a nation at peace the oppressions which na- 
tions in conflict will not endure. The crime which 
they commit here is worse than that which has ap- 
peared abroad, for in this country it is wholly specu- 
lative, whereas in Europe it is to a large extent 
economic. This country is glutted with food. Europe 
is not. If necessary to promote the welfare of our 
people, we may and should forbid the exports upon 
the promise of which the impending robbery is based. 

Political economy is a dismal science which was 
designed to intensify and excuse such conditions as 
now prevail. So-called natural laws, such as that of 
supply and demand, have always been urged upon 
those who languish and die as a sufficient excuse for 
their wretchedness. The first law of nature is self- 

177 



178 AMERICAN GAMBLERS IN FOOD SUPPLIES 

preservation, and nations as well as men must on due 
provocation appeal to it. 

Before we starve Europe must starve. Starvation 
in Europe means peace. Starvation in the United 
States means war! 

THE PRESIDENT ACTS TO RESTRAIN RISE IN PRICES 

President Wilson directed the Attorney General 
and the Secretary of Commerce August 13 to begin an 
investigation of the " rapid and unwarranted increase 
in the prices of foodstuffs" in the United States 
"upon the pretext of conditions existing in Europe." 
Later he may send a message to Congress on the 
subject. 

Attorney General McReynolds is asked in a letter 
from the President to advise him if there is any 
means of checking the advances by legal process, and 
also what legislation may be needed to meet the situa- 
tion. Mr. McReynolds at once set the Department of 
Justice machinery in motion, and the various United 
States attorneys will assist in the inquiry. 

Members of Congress are also up in arms over the 
increased cost of living and have offered several bills 
designed to remedy conditions. It is the President's 
purpose, however, to approach the problem in a sys- 
tematic and determined manner, and if legislation is 
enacted it will bear the stamp of approval of the 
administration. 

Mr. McReynolds sent a letter to the President 
stating that agents of the Department of Justice 
have been put to work on the case and already had 



AMERICAN GAMBLERS IN FOOD SUPPLIES 179 

instituted investigations. At his suggestion agents 
of the Department of Commerce were also set to work 
by Secretary Redfield. 

The food question was the first into which Presi- 
dent Wilson plunged when he went back to his desk 
after his return from Rome, Georgia, where he buried 
Mrs. Wilson. 

The letter to the Attorney General follows : 

The rapid and unwarranted increase in the prices of foodstuffs 
in this country upon the pretext of the conditions existing in 
Europe is so serious and vital a matter that I take the liberty 
of calling your attention to it. 

I woul,d be very much obliged if you would advise me whether 
there is, under existing law, any action which the Department 
of Justice could take, either by way of investigation or legal 
process, and what federal legislation, if any, would, in your 
judgment, be justifiable and warrantable in the circumstances. 

I feel that this is a matter which we cannot let pass by without 
trying to serve the country. Certainly the country ought to be 
defended, if possible, against men who would take advantage of 
such circumstances to increase the price of food and the diffi- 
culties of living. 

Faithfully yours, 

"Woodrow "Wilson. 

AMERICAN CONSTRUCTION CONTRASTED WITH EUROPEAN 

DESTRUCTION 

By a coincidence so strange in history as almost to 
justify the superstitious, two ideals present their 
fruits to the judgment of the day and of posterity 
in the same month, the same week, the same day. The 
European ideal bears its full fruit of ruin and savag- 
ery just at the moment when the American ideal lays 



180 AMERICAN GAMBLERS IN FOOD SUPPLIES 

before the world a great work of peace, good-will 
and fair play. The infernal blaze of destruction 
there lights up the fulfillment of a great work of 
construction here. While the madmen of Europe tug 
at the pillars of the temple of civilization the Panama 
canal is thrown open to the world. 

The contrast is made complete by the opening of 
the canal at the moment when the ideal of self- 
aggrandizement has wrought its inevitable disaster. 
It is while the military nations are doing their utmost 
to destroy twentieth century civilization and throw 
the world into the past that the great democratic na- 
tion opens a door looking upon the future. As one 
ideal fulfills itself in hurling the world backward 
the other beckons it forward. While the European 
madness is tearing nations apart America completes 
a labor of peace designed to bring them together; 
and which will, when the delirium of today is over, 
bring them together. 

A comment is heard to the effect that there is a 
sad irony in opening the canal to the world's trade 
at a moment when there is no trade to go through it. 
No, there is a felicity in the contrast which makes 
this seem the thne of all others that we should have 
chosen, if we had had a choice, to offer our work to 
the world. The difference between the foundations 
on which the American system was built and those on 
which the European system rests could never other- 
wise have been so impressively illustrated. The 
skeptics who watched so cynically for the downfall 
of the fanciful and quixotic experiment launched on 



AMERICAN GAMBLERS IN FOOD SUPPLIES 181 

this side of the Atlantic, who knew that nothing could 
endure that was so different from the practical and 
common-sense system of royalty and militarism, 
should be here today to watch the flowering of one 
ideal in destruction and the other in creation. 

If 1914 is to be remembered as Europe's terrible 
year, it will be remembered as a year glorious for 
America. It began with the firm refusal of the 
United States to take advantage of the distracted 
state of Mexico, a refusal which no European nation 
would have given and which no European nation 
could understand. The system under which Poland 
was partitioned and Hungary absorbed was the same 
as that which devoured Bosnia, seeks to devour Ser- 
via, and violates its treaties to crush Belgium. The 
system which, having broken Spanish rule in Cuba, 
handed Cuba over to her people instead of devouring 
her, is the same which plays in Mexico a helpful and 
creative part instead of a selfish and greedy part. 
It is the same which, completing a work for which 
the world has waited four centuries, hands it over 
to the world. It is fortunate that twice in the same 
year the United States has been able to demonstrate 
the value of her own ideal, and doubly fortunate that 
that year happened to be the one in which Europe 
was demonstrating the terrible hopelessness of hers. 

A sympathetic student of the American experi- 
ment, De Tocqueville, wrote that the time had not 
yet come to judge how that experiment would work 
in the field of foreign relations and that judgment 
must be suspended. But he added : 



& 



182 AMERICAN GAMBLERS IN FOOD SUPPLIES 

"As for myself, I have no hesitation in avowing 
my conviction that it is most specially in the conduct 
of foreign relations that democratic governments 
appear to me to be decidedly inferior to governments 
carried on upon different principles." 

Eighty years after these words were written the 
European theory of foreign relations was that 
each nation must gain only at the expense of others ; 
that each must regard the others with fear and suspi- 
cion and must acquire from the others the utmost 
that could be gained without danger to itself; that 
for this purpose unsleeping vigilance was necessary, 
that the attitude of each to the others must be of hos- 
tile watchfulness, and that immense standing armies 
were the only guaranty of what they called peace, 
but what in reality was only truce. That theory 
culminated on August 1, 1914, in conflagration. On 
August 15, 1914, the American democracy opened the 
Panama canaL 



THE WAR AND SOUTH AMERICA 

Latin- American Trade 

The war in Europe brings all of South America 
face to face with a financial and industrial crisis 
which may prove to be for the United States as great 
a business opportunity as ever was offered any 
nation. 

The Latin- American republics are confronted with 
an immediate famine of those goods of universal use 
which they have been buying in Europe at the rate 
of two-thirds of $1,000,000,000 a year. 

The market for their raw materials, which they 
export at the rate of more than $1,000,000,000 a year, 
is very largely cut off by the war. 

The ships upon which they have been dependent 
for their mails and their cargoes of imports and ex- 
ports, and the cable lines and vessels upon which they 
have relied for their banking facilities, are not in 
operation, so that they are in a state of blockade at 
their chief ports just as completely as if they were 
at war. The steamship service with Europe has been 
so regular and complete that they have been doing 
business on orders placed at a notice of only thirty or 
sixty days. 

And the loans which these countries have been try- 
ing to place in Europe cannot now be floated, so that 
several of the southern republics are upon the verge 
of real financial stringency: 

183 



184 THE WAR AND SOUTH AMERICA 

Thus the merchants and manufacturers of this 
country have offered them the chance to make the 
South Americans the warmest of friends for many 
years to come by going to their rescue in this time 
of stress, and in the same connection they may in- 
crease enormously their trade with the republics of 
the southern continent. 

DIEECT STEAMSHIP LINES 

In order to accomplish this the North Americans 
must undertake without unnecessary delay the open- 
ing of direct lines of ships to the chief ports of Brazil 
and Argentina, and, the instant the Panama canal 
opens, to the principal ports of the Pacific coast of 
the continent. They must aid the exporters of the 
South American cities by turning to them for a good 
share of their raw materials, for unless the Latin- 
Americans can find a market for these materials 
which now they cannot sell in Europe, their capacity 
for purchasing American imports will be greatly 
lessened. 

American financiers also must subscribe for a rea- 
sonable share of South American bonds. Hitherto 
these securities have been marketed almost altogether 
in Europe; South American finances have been 
largely in the hands of European houses ; but at the 
very time when Europe cannot absorb the bonds 
which the Latin republics need to float they will natu- 
rally turn to North America, and it is regarded by 
students of the situation as "good business," promis- 
ing big dividends in future export trade with South 



Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y., 1911, 

The most modern of all fighting machines attached to His Majesty 
King George's aeronautic forces. The gun is mounted beneath the pilot's 
seat, in front of the gunner 



THE WAR AND SOUTH AMERICA 185. 

America, to buy quantities of these securities, pro- 
vided they are good securities, and that has never 
been doubted by European buyers. 

Finally American exporters must ascertain exactly 
what goods are needed in South America which can 
not now be obtained from the customary European 
sources of supply, and then proceed to offer those 
goods in the markets of the great cities of the Latin- 
Americans. In packing, marking and billing them 
the utmost pains must be taken to please all the little 
preferences and prejudices of these prospective buy- 
ers. Watchfulness in that respect has been one of 
the secrets of European success. 

AGGRESSIVE ACTION FAIR 

This situation is so full of peril for South America 
that John Barrett, director-general of the Pan- 
American Union, has sent out an appeal for the 
United States to aid those countries in a critical time 
for which they themselves are not at all to blame. 
And as to the fairness of aggressive action he says: 

" While the United States must hesitate to take 
any unfair advantage of foreign trade at the expense 
of nations engaged in war, it cannot, on the other 
hand, hesitate to face this situation as it is and to 
respond to the call of the sister republics to the 
south. ' ' 

The figures which show just how great the need of 
these countries is may be put into two or three funda- 
mental statements. 

Of her- imports South America has been taking in 



186 THE WAR AND SOUTH AMERICA 

a year from war-ridden Europe $660,000,000, and of 
that amount there came from Germany $180,000,000, 
from France $84,000,000, from Belgium $47,000,000, 
and from the United Kingdom $273,000,000. From 
the United States there came $155,000,000. 

In like manner the chief markets for South Amer- 
ican raw materials are closed by the war. Europe 
took $700,000,000 in all— the United Kingdom took 
$270,000,000, Germany $157,000,000, France absorbed 
$104,000,000, Belgium $60,000,000, and Austria used 
raw material to the value of $22,000,000. Imports to 
the United States aggregated $250,000,000. 

Nine of every ten of the ships that carried these 
goods are now withdrawn from trade, and it is be- 
lieved most of these vessels will be unable to operate 
for months or even for years. 

ON THE PACIFIC COAST 

In Chili, especially when the canal is opened, there 
is likely to be a chance for the United States to re- 
place $40,000,000 worth of European imports with a 
like amount of goods manufactured here. Germany 
in 1913 sent to Chili almost twice the quantity of 
machinery that came from the United States, and 
five times as much paper. 

Of woolen goods Chili's consumption amounts to 
$7,000,000, and from the United States there comes 
but $9,000 worth, the balance being divided almost 
equally between the United Kingdom and Germany. 
Also, while the United Kingdom sends cotton goods 
to Chili worth $7,000,000 and Germany a value of 



THE WAR AND SOUTH AMERICA 187 

$3,500,000, the United States is exporting there a 
paltry $770,000. 

Nor can Chili get from her usual sources of supply 
her manufactures of iron and steel, locomotives, in- 
dustrial machinery and many other commodities. 

From all this it is apparent that Germany espe- 
cially is bound to be hard hit by the war. Her trans- 
portation of exports is bound to be crippled. Her 
industrial productiveness is at least cut in half by 
the drafting of hundreds of thousands of men for 
service in the armies. And Germany has made great 
strides in South American commerce, largely through 
the development of her system of foreign credits and 
her extended accommodations to Latin-American 
traders and to her splendid personnel of salesman- 
ship. Other countries also have organized shipping 
and banking systems that have been both very large 
and very efficient. 

UNDOUBTED OPPORTUNITY 

That the opportunity is here for the United States 
to establish herself on a permanent basis in South 
America there is no doubt. To do it the manufactur- 
ers and merchants must use every pound of inge- 
nuity, foresight and energy they possess. The re- 
turns ought to be abundantly satisfactory. 

The cotton men are threatened with embarrass- 
ment because their dyes have all been coming from 
Germany. But it is declared by several experts that 
dyes can be made in this country that will be quite 
up to the mark in beauty and cheapness. 



188 THE WAR AND SOUTH AMERICA 

As to shoes, many of the South American shoes 
are made in those countries. But a large import 
trade is shut out of Switzerland, Austria, Germany 
and France. Also an important source of the supply 
of hides is closed by the demoralization of the steam- 
ship lines, the South American product nearly all 
coming here by way of Europe. Para rubber also 
will be hard to obtain. The shoe situation but em- 
phasizes again the need of direct communication be- 
tween the two continents, north and south. 

AMERICAN SHIPPING BILL 

Congress passed the emergency shipping bill, Au- 
gust 18, which authorizes the President to admit for- 
eign built ships to American registry so that com- 
mercial fleets may sail the seas under protection of 
the American flag while belligerents of Europe are 
at war and scouring the oceans for prizes. President 
Wilson signed the bill. 

The Senate defeated the conference report on the 
measure by a vote of 40 to 20, and passed the bill in 
the same form that it passed the House. The confer- 
ence report was lost because of determined opposition 
to the provision admitting to the American coastwise 
trade all foreign built vessels taking American regis- 
ter within two years. 

As finally agreed to, the bill, besides providing for 
the registry of foreign built ships, authorizes the 
President, in his discretion, to suspend provisions of 
the law requiring all watch officers of American ves- 
sels in the foreign trade to be citizens of the United 



THE WAR AND SOUTH AMERICA 189 

States, requiring survey, inspection and measure- 
ment of vessels admitted to registry by officers of the 
United States. 

Creation of a government war risk insurance bu- 
reau to facilitate shipping across the Atlantic during 
the war is proposed in a bill to be introduced in the 
House with the approval of the administration. It 
provides for a war risk fund of $5,000,000, with which 
the government would insure the vessels needed to 
carry the cargoes of American products now await- 
ing transportation. Secretary McAdoo thinks it un- 
likely many vessels will take advantage in the imme- 
diate future of the American registry law unless war 
risk insurance can be provided. 



WAR MEASURES 



MILITARY STRATEGY 



Strategy originally referred to the skill displayed 
by the commander of an army. At the end of the 
eighteenth century war had become such a well- 
defined business that it could be conducted on a code 
of methods known as tactics. 

In the beginning anything that could not be burned 
or climbed over could be used to stop an enemy. One 
endeavor, however, produced another, so that inven- 
tion could effectively use tricks that had to be de- 
tected and defeated. 

In the rage for conquest and mercenary invasion 
plans had to be learned how best to feed and clear 
the way for the army. The introduction of gunpow- 
der in the seventeenth century required an entire new 
creation of attack and defense. 

During these ages when nations were made and 
unmade by hand-to-hand conflict, they were usually 
so evenly matched that they fought till exhausted, 
unless one could turn a trick that broke the balance 
and gave victory to the strategist. While maneuver- 
ing before each other they often built up huge forti- 
fications, still used as a chief means of defense. 

Frederick the Great introduced individual effi- 
ciency as of first importance and thus defeated the 
Austrians, who had no way to surmount the advan- 
tage thus given to the Prussian troops. 

190 



WAR MEASURES 191 

Only genius broke down methods, and Napoleon's 
success came largely through his use of new strategy 
which the old-line officers of other nations did not 
know how to meet. The French revolution broke 
down all old methods and enabled Napoleon to build 
a new one from the foundations up. 

He was able to fill his depleted ranks by conscripts, 
and since then when a nation goes to war the military 
machine is able to bring whoever it desires into the 
field, regardless of his will. 

The rise of the idea of fortifications made the study 
of topography advance to a science. The necessity 
of caring for the wounded brought out to the great- 
est perfection both sanitary and surgical science. 

War lords have never supposed that a war in any 
way concerned the will of the commoner. He might 
have to change his allegiance to another nation, but 
his life would be little altered. War was the game 
of men charged with the divine right. 

However, the good will of the tillers of the soil 
was quite essential, and, like other fashions, was 
sometimes carried out at ridiculous lengths and 
details. 

The wholesale killing of men as a profession has 
been recently undergoing startling changes owing to 
the inventions changing the conditions of attack and 
defense in air and sea. The great European conflict 
of 1914 had many new problems to solve, and as in 
all other wars, the genius was staged to win wherever 
the new could outclass in strategy the old. 

The Russians never depended upon swift side 



192 WAR MEASURES 

movements or front rushes. They would stubbornly 
fight all clay and retreat to their supplies at night. 
The attacking army could never keep up with them 
and was ultimately worn out. They were slow but 
always the hardest to defeat. 

The war of 1914 had to be fought out on lines never 
before attempted. Automobiles, airships, wireless 
telegraphy and the frightful efficiency of guns placed 
a new test on the development of strategy in war. 

FORTIFICATIONS 

The greatest fortifications in the world are those 
along the Franco-German frontier. 

The first fortifications to be described in history 
are those erected in defense against arrows, slung- 
shots, battering rams, and the assault of soldiers. 
Stone walls with towers at short distances were the 
most effective means then known. These walls often 
surrounded cities, and even gardening districts. The 
greatest was that of the great wall of China. 

The invention of gunpowder did not make any 
change necessary during the century when stones 
were used for balls, but in 1480 the use of cast-iron 
balls did away with the advantage that defense had 
over attack. 

Earth was then thrown up against the walls, and 
again invention had triumphed over invention, giv- 
ing the preponderance of power to the defense over 
the attack. 

Some genius then invented the ditch behind the 
wall of earth or stone, and it was necessary for the 



WAR MEASURES 193 

attack to increase the efficiency of its instruments; 
so the improvement went on, first to the advantage 
of one and then the other, till we have reached the 
advancement of airships, submarines and monster 
siege guns. 

When the range of siege guns had increased from 
500 yards to 800 yards, a girdle of forts about a mile 
beyond the fortifications was constructed to hold off 
the enemy, each fort garrisoned and provisioned to 
withstand a separate siege. In 1859 the use of rifled 
artillery in the Franco- Austrian war, with a range 
increased to about two miles, broke down the girdle 
of garrisoned forts as a means of defense and re- 
quired merely artillery behind a strong defense of 
concrete and steel. 

In 1890 the fortified or intrenched camp was de- 
fended by a girdle of infantry four or five miles from 
the camp, located behind redoubts, which are con- 
nected by a railway of cars for carrying ammunition. 

THE CONCERT OF EUROPE 

The ambassadors of the Great Powers met in Lon- 
don and issued proposals to the belligerents in the 
recent Turco-Balkan war. They were acting as the 
concert of Europe, a kind of ring, as it were, around 
the pugilists, deciding who was. getting beyond the 
prescribed ring and who was winner in each round. 

Sometimes the conference of ambassadors acted as 
a court of appeal, and then appeared as the voice of 
Europe, the peacemakers of the world. 



194 WAR MEASURES 

Instead of allowing Servia to have a port on the 
sea, they set up Albania as a kingdom between Servia 
and its natural outlet in the commerce of the world. 

The concert of Europe was then the united song 
of the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente — soon 
to break from each other's embrace and tear at each 
other's throats with the ferocity of jungle beasts. 

The struggle of Europe is in no sense between 
races or religions, but between aligmnents and the 
balance of power among powers. 

Italy and Austria, with the sanction of Germany, 
diplomatically defeated the wish of Russia, backed 
by France and England, that Servia have a seaport. 
Then a Servian assassinated the heir to the Austrian 
throne, the flame of rage burst through diplomacy 
into the powder-houses of war. 

The quarrel of neighbors over how to distribute 
bones among their dogs seems about as near an ob- 
vious analogy as can be made. 

HOW THE GREAT ALLIANCES, NOW AT WAR, WERE FORMED 

Since the inception of the stupendous war much is 
heard of the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente. 
These two coalitions were formed ostensibly for de- 
fensive purposes, and the two include the six great 
Powers. 

What they are : 

TRIPLE ALLIANCE 

Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy. This alli- 
ance was first a dual alliance between Germany and 



WAR MEASURES 195 

Austria, formed in 1879 after the Franco-Prussian 
war, as a defense against the encroachments of the 
French and Russians. 

Bismarck, the great German chancellor, was the 
prime mover in the alliance, and he had visions of a 
"Dreikaiserbund" — an alliance of Germany, Austria 
and Russia — which never materialized. 

In 1883 Italy entered the Triple Alliance. The 
pact was amplified in 1887 and renewed in 1902 and 
1907. Its last period of expiration was June 14, 1914, 
but at that time the alliance was renewed for twelve 
years. 

TRIPLE ENTENTE 

England, France and Russia. This coalition had 
its beginning in 1895, when France and Russia laid 
the foundation of a dual alliance which w T as perfected 
in 1897. In 1904 Great Britain formed an entente 
cordiale with France, and in 1907 made a similar 
arrangement with Russia. The "interlocking" 
agreements among the three nations resulted in the 
Triple Entente. 

The articles of agreement on which rest both the 
Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente lay great 
stress on the assertion that they are for defense only. 
For instance, Germany is pledged to assist Austria- 
Hungary against Russia only in the event that Russia 
is the aggressor. England is under obligation to help 
France against Germany only when Germany started 
the trouble. 

That is the explanation of the apparent anxiety of 



196 WAR MEASURES 

each of the warring nations to pass the responsibility 
beginning the war. The Kaiser declared that Ger- 
man}^ was forced into the war by the aggressions of 
France and Russia. France, on the other hand, 
strenuously asserted that the Germans were respon- 
sible. If it could have been made to appear that 
France and Russia were acting on the offensive there 
was hope that England might hold that the Triple 
Entente had not been violated and accordingly have 
remained neutral. 

For this reason also both France and Germany 
committed acts of war before declaring war. Ger- 
man and French troops were rushed to the frontier 
and in some instances crossed it before the formal 
declarations came. The same is true of Russia. Each 
nation strove vigorously to provoke the others to 
declare war first, so that the technical responsibility 
might rest upon them. 

But finally the Kaiser's patience was tried to its 
limit and Germany declared war on France and 
Russia. Both those nations reciprocated imme- 
diately. With Germany apparently the aggressor, 
England had no recourse but to get into the war or 
repudiate the Triple Entente. 

The objects of the Triple Entente are stated as 
follows : 

1. To keep the balance of power intact in Europe. 

2. To strengthen the treaty law in the interest of 
peace and the status quo. 

3. To stop the increase of armaments and ulti- 
mately to bring about disarmament. 



WAR MEASURES 197 

INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION 

The Hague contains the . first court-house in the 
parliament of the world. No sooner is it dedicated 
than the million-bodied mobs of Europe are flung at 
each other's throats. 

It was dedicated to international peace and arbi- 
tration on August 28, 1913, and in less than a year 
the most colossal war in all history had begun. 

The fourth American Peace Conference was held 
at St. Louis on May 13, composed of delegates repre- 
senting thirty states and fifty cities. 

Among the noted men prominent in the work of 
peace may be mentioned David Starr Jordan of 
Leland Stanford University, Charles W. Eliot. Nor- 
man Angell, author of "The Great Illusion," Bishop 
Greer, president of the Church Peace League. The 
American Peace Society at Washington and the 
World Peace Foundation are both widely developing 
sentiment and fixing the will of the people against 
war. 

WAR SONGS OF THE NATIONS 

With all Europe in war fever, the national songs 
of the nations are echoing in street and market. 
Where did they come from? 

The English national anthem, "God Save the 
King," which is used in this country to the words 
"My Country 'Tis of Thee" is generally recognized 
as the work of Henry Carey, who wrote both words 
and music. It seems to have been adopted as a 
patriotic song during the Jacobite rising in 1743. 



198 WAR MEASURES 

According to Granville Bantock, in his "Patriotic 
Songs of All Nations," published by Ditson, this song 
"has been considerably modified and has served as a 
national song for Germany, America, Denmark and 
Switzerland." 

The American version was first sung in Park Street 
Church, Boston, July 4, 1832. The words are by 
Samuel Smith, a clergyman, and a friend and class- 
mate of Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes. 

England boasts of another national song in "Rule 
Britannia," composed by Dr. Arne in 1710. It 
formed one of the numbers in a masque called "Al- 
fred," the words of which were written by James 
Thomson and David Mallet. 

Scotland boasts of "Scots Wha Iiae," by her 
greatest poet, Robert Burns, who adapted his poem 
to an old traditional air said to have been sung by 
Robert Bruce 's men at the battle of Bannockburn. 

Ireland has "The Wearing of the Green"; Wales 
has her "Men of Harlech." 

Of the several patriotic airs of France, "La Mar- 
seillaise" is the most famous and in more general use. 
Words and music of this justly celebrated song are 
attributed to Rouget de l'lsle, who is said to have 
written them in 1792 on the eve of the French Revo- 
lution. 

In its original form the song was known as "Chant 
de l'Armee du Rhin." The song was taken up by 
the Marseillais on their famous inarch to Paris and 
sung by them during the attack on the Tuileries. 

The Parisians, supposing the song to be the hymn 



WAR MEASURES 199 

of the Marseillais, gave it its present title and 
adopted it as the national hymn of the republic. It 
has ever since been France's chief national song. 

Belgium is today thrilling to the strains of "La 
Brabonconne. " The song appeared in 1830 during 
the struggle between Belgium and Holland, when the 
former country sought self-government and escaped 
from the Butch yoke. 

It was adopted as the war song of the Belgians 
and has remained since then the national song of the 
state. The verses were written by Jenneval and set 
to music by Campenhout. It was dedicated to the 
defenders of Brussels, which at that time was threat- 
ened by the Dutch army. 

To the struggle between France and Germany the 
world owes many of the patriotic songs associated 
with tliis historic river. Chief of these is "The 
Watch on the Rhine." The present text was written 
by Schneckenburger in 1840 and received many set- 
tings, the most popular being that by Carl Wilhelm 
in 1854. It was popular with the German soldiers 
during the Franco-Prussian war, and at the close of 
the conflict became the national song of United 
Germany. 

The most famous national air of the Hungarians 
is the widely known "Rakoczy March," introduced 
by Berlioz so effectively in his "Damnation of 
Faust." 

In its original form it was a lament for the hero 
after whom it was named. The music is by Franz 
Erkel. 



200 "WAR MEASURES 

The honors of Italian national music are divided 
between the "Marche Royale," which is purely in- 
strumental, and "Garibaldi's War Hymn," which 
has both words and music. 

"God Save the Tsar," Russia's national anthem, 
owes its text to Joukowsky, who wrote it in 1833. By 
command of Tsar Nicholas I it was set to noble and 
dignified music by Alexes Lwoff. 

The melody of the Polish national song, " Jeszcze 
Poland," is attributed to Oginski, who lived early 
in the nineteenth century. The song was very popu- 
lar with the Polish legionaries during the struggle 
for liberation from the Russian yoke in 1830-1831. 
Wyhtski wrote the words. 

"Rise, O Servians!" is the command of the Serbs' 
national hymn. Both author and composer are un- 
known. The song came into prominence in 1848, 
when the Servians were at war with the Hungarians. 

During the insurrection against the Turks in 1876 
the Bulgarians improvised a marching song founded 
on an old popular air, which was afterward adopted 
as the national anthem. 

Our own country, in addition to "My Country 'Tis 
of Thee," boasts of "The Star Spangled Banner," 
"Yankee Doodle" and "Hail Columbia." 




Copyright by Underwood & Vndenvood, N. Y., 19H 

King George V of England 



BOOK III 
Causes of the Great War of Wars 

The Machinery of War 

and the 

History of the Warring Governments 

THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF 
MODERN WAR 

Contrasts in the Vision of Heroism 

The fighting methods that gave American Grand 
Army speakers snch fruitful material for Memorial 
Day seem one with Alexander's phalanxes, Caesar's 
legions and the helmet of Navarre. The assault on 
Liege has proved the obsolescence of picturesque 
charges on fortified heights. Masked batteries rain- 
ing shells on unseen foes form no such theme as ' ' The 
Storming of Mission Ridge." The chautauqua plat- 
form and the college rostrum are bound to suffer. 

We learn that General Joseph Joffre, commander- 
in-chief of the French army, has won the admiration 
of his troops by his endurance in dashing about the 
country in a motor car, with Georges Boillot, winner 
of the Grand Prix, at the wheel. A battle front ex- 
tending league upon league doubtless requires an 
automobile. It is comforting to know that some real 

201 



202 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

use has at last been found for the world's speed kings. 
The enthusiasm aroused by a commander courageous 
enough to engage such a chauffeur can readily be 
understood. But what is to become of the foam- 
flecked charger; what of the panting steed? We 
have heard the distant clatter of hoofs steal out of 
the midnight silence; we have listened to the beats 
growing louder and louder on the sun-baked road; 
we have gripped the arms of our orchestra chairs 
as the horrendous "Whoa!" echoed in the wings and 
the dust-covered courier, booted and spurred, dashed 
on the stage with the eleventh-hour reprieve. Must 
we now shiver at the sputter and pop of a gasoline 
engine % 

Perhaps if "Phil" Sheridan had had a motor car 
he would have been at Cedar Crek shortly after the 
battle started, and thus the necessity of stemming a 
retreat with a sixty-horsepower machine would have 
been obviated. Just how his epic exploit would work 
out in modern conditions is difficult to conceive. Off- 
hand we should say that a goggled general, gripping 
the windshield ' with one gloved fist and lifting a 
clanking sabre with the other, meanwhile tearing 
over the roads in a screaming Juggernaut, would 
probably complete the annihilation begun by the 
enemy. 

THE CONTRAST IN METHODS AND MEANS. 

What a change has taken place in the management ( 
of a war ! No longer are the citizens aroused by mid- 
night rides and lanterns hung in church steeples. 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 203 

Electricity carries the news and the orders. No team 
is relied upon to serve as a means of transporting 
food supplies. Nowadays no nation trusts to the 
country through which it marches for its mainte- 
nance. Steam takes the men to the colors and trans- 
ports them with their equipment to the scene of war. 
It carries the supplies after them. 

In the old days information w T as gathered and 
orders were transmitted by men on foot or on horse- 
back. News was transmitted in the same way. The 
description of how a rider and a foam-flecked horse 
carried the news to some city has furnished more 
than one poet with material for his imagination and 
pen. The telegraph has trained the world to stand 
before a bulletin board and watch the progress of a 
battle as one would a ball game. 

THE ROLE PLAYED IN THE TRAGEDY BY ELECTRICITY 

Electricity has put the control of all the imple- 
ments of war into the hands of a few seated in some 
central place. No matter where in the field the com- 
manding officers may be, they can be reached by tele- 
graph and telephone, for every army has its men and 
equipment for rapid establishment of service. One 
hundred years ago Napolean and Wellington at 
Waterloo were obliged to rely upon men on swift 
horses to transmit their orders to their troops and 
for receiving details of the progress of the battle. 
In those days the commander who had an army of 
a hundred thousand men — a great army then — would, 
if possible, take his position on an elevated spot 



204 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

where lie could see what was taking place. Today 
he might be miles from the front, and seated in his 
tent beside a topographical map receiving reports 
and giving commands by telegraph and telephone. 
His army might contain 300,000 men instead of 
100,000. In constant touch with the war board at 
the capital, part of the initiative required of the com- 
mander of Wellington's day has been made unneces- 
sary. The field of observation has been increased 
to take in the entire frontier, and instantly an army 
in one part may be put in touch with another through 
headquarters, and orders issued for the movements 
of troops hundreds of miles away. An army is no 
longer a cruising body of men. It is a mailed fist 
controlled by a distant brain. 

A century ago there were no steam war vessels, 
with the exception of the Demologos, which Fulton 
was building here in New York harbor for the pur- 
pose of protecting the port from blockaders threaten- 
ing to stop up the harbor. Everything was propelled 
by sail. Once a commander of a war vessel cleared 
from port he was master of all he surveyed, pro- 
vided he could maintain his sway. He was thrown 
absolutely upon his own resources. Months might 
elapse before he heard again from his government. 
Indeed he might be taking prizes, entirely unaware 
that war had stopped. One of the best known of the 
land battles of the War of 1812, that of New Or- 
leans, was fought after the peace treaty had been 
signed with Great Britain, simply because communi- 
cation with Europe was then by means of sailing 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OP WAR 205 

vessels. Now ultimatums are flung about and war 
declared within a calendar day, and the negotiators 
of peace treaties are little more than messengers and 
reporters, doing the bidding of men at the seat of 
government. 

A century ago nothing would be known of a vic- 
tory until the fruits thereof were brought into port. 
Wireless telegraphy and the cable have changed all 
that. It is possible to receive reports from and give 
orders to the vessels of the navy while at sea. The 
captain is in as close touch with the fleet as if the 
commander were seated at the elbow of the Secretary 
of the Navy. The merchantmen, the prey of the 
cruising war vessel of a century ago, may also be 
warned of the proximity of an enemy while upon the 
high seas and escape. Witness the arrival at Bar 
Harbor of that modern galleon yclept Kronprinzessin 
Cecile with her treasury of ten millions of gold. She 
and other great vessels of her kind received knowl- 
edge of the declaration of war and were enabled to 
avoid capture by turning back to neutral ports. The 
capture of a few such prizes a century ago would 
have gone far toward financing a war. 

COMMANDS FLASHED FROM ONE POINT TO ANOTHER 

Electrical communication alone made possible mo- 
bilization such as has been seen in Europe the last 
week. Everything prearranged, even to the signal 
words, the warning to be up and doing flashed across 
the land and out over the sea — a Paul Revere of a 
new kind. 



206 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

The immediate control of the battles themselves is 
also centralized by electrical communication, whether 
on land or sea. At the general's elbow is his tele- 
graph operator and his telephone. The admiral in 
his conning tower sends his orders by wireless or 
other form of electric signal. The modern armada 
works as a unit, and naval warfare is the operation 
of a complicated group of machines set to grind out 
so many shots a minute at a target whose range has 
been carefully determined. 

To warfare in the course of the century has been 
added a new method of fighting. A new domain has 
been conquered by man's ingenuity. It is no longer 
enough to control the land and the water, but the 
enemy must be met in the air. The swift aeroplane 
and the steady dirigible, capable not only of deter- 
mining the position of an enemy but of assuming the 
offensive by means of destructive bombs, have added 
new terrors to warfare. Aerial warfare knows no 
boundary lines, and to those who ride in them the 
secrets of cities, fortifications, battleships and armies 
are riddled clear. So we shall have conflicts in the 
air in the year 1914, and the relative merits of Ger- 
many's marvelous dirigibles and France's fast aero- 
planes will be determined. 

In the implements of warfare and the forms of 
attack and defense the contrasts between those in 
use a century ago and those employed today are as 
marked as the changes in the organization of the 
forces. The inventions are so numerous that it is 
almost impossible to enumerate them. The cannon 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 207 

were muzzle-loading, smooth bores, firing round 
shots. Their smoke soon hid the enemy from view, 
for, owing to the shortness of their range, the men 
fought at close grips. On the water they were 
mounted in tiers in thick, oaken walled hulks called 
frigates and driven by the wind. Naval battles were 
often hand-to-hand conflicts, in which two vessels 
were fastened together with irons and the men of 
one swarmed over the side of the other, armed with 
boarding pikes and cutlasses. 

NOW THEY HURL HALF-TON MISSILES SEVEN MILES 

Today a battleship within three miles of another 
of a hostile flag is in great danger, for breech-load- 
ing, rifled cannon capable of throwing broadsides of 
shells of a half a ton weight, and charged with highly 
destructive explosives, timed to go off at a given mo- 
ment, can be sent into the vitals of a ship at a dis- 
tance of seven miles with a considerable degree of 
accuracy. The shells are fired by smokeless powder, 
whose strength can be predetermined in reckoning 
the amount required for transferring the messenger 
of death to its destination. In fact, instruments have 
been devised for ascertaining the range and speed 
of the enemy with mathematical accuracy, and the 
guns are so finely adjusted that they can be set to 
drop their burden within a few feet of the designated 
spot. 

The ships themselves bear no resemblance to the 
vessels of other days. Mighty engines using steam 



208 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

propel them through the water at two and three 
times the speed of the old, lumbering, wind-driven 
frigate, and in any direction at any time. No longer 
do sails form a part of the equipment of a war vessel. 
The only masts are those metal structures which 
carry searchlights, small guns, apparatus for con- 
trolling the fire of the ship and the wires employed 
in wireless telegraphy. The commander no longer 
stands on the towering quarterdeck giving his orders 
through a speaking trumpet. Today he takes his 
place in a steel-walled conning tower, in the forward 
part of the vessel, and whispers them through a tele- 
phone. The ship itself is nothing more than a great 
machine shop, barracks and gun platform, belted 
around with plates of Harveyized steel a foot or 
more thick. The "wooden walls" of England are 
now steel. The aiming of the guns, the transfer of 
the ammunition from the magazine to the breeches 
of the guns, the steering of the ship and every other 
mechanical operation is now performed by power. 
A touch of the hand will move the great leviathan 
and set all of its "in'ards" at work. The sailors no 
longer are sailors in the old meaning of the word. 
And the battle is fought from afar. 

Two devices of marine warfare have been invented 
since Napoleon sailed on the Bellerophon for St. 
Helena. They are the automobile torpedo and the 
submarine. The simple wooden cask that once served 
as an immobile menace to shipping has been trans- 
formed into a metal projectile propelled through the 
water beneath the surface by its own power and 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 209 

equipped with a mechanism that enables it to main- 
tain its course with inflexible straightness. It carries 
energy enough to strike the hull of an enemy much 
more than a mile away. Thus has Fulton's dream 
been fulfilled. Moreover, submarine mines and their 
control have been highly developed. A whole net- 
work of them can be deposited in a harbor or channel 
at short notice and so connected with the shore that 
individually they will signal the proximity and loca- 
tion of an enemy without being discharged until fired 
from the land switchboard with which they are con- 
nected and to which they have reported. Their power 
is sufficient to destroy the most formidable battle- 
ship. The efficiency of the submarine torpedo boat 
will be tested now, in all probability. Naval battles 
are now fought at arm's length, not at close quarters, 
as in the past. Two battleships attacking each other 
probably never will be able in the future to come to 
grips. One or the other will have been sunk or sur- 
rendered before this can come to pass. The battles 
themselves, unlike those of a century ago, will be of 
minutes duration instead of hours. 

THE CEMENT FOETS AND GUNS THAT DISAPPEAR. 

Nations do not rely entirely upon armadas to pro- 
tect their coasts. Fortifications of cement have 
replaced many of the older works of earth-covered 
piles of stone. The smooth-bores which used to peer 
over the latter, black and ominous, have in more 
senses than one literally disappeared. They have 
been replaced by long, rifled, breech-loading guns 



210 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

mounted on hinge-like steel arms that lift them to 
the parapet at the moment of firing and withdraw 
them immediately after the giant shell has been dis- 
patched on its way toward the tiny object on the 
horizon. The guns are as powerful as any to be 
found upon a battleship and have the advantage of 
being on always stable platforms. 

The equipment of a coast defence fortification 
today includes apparatus for measuring the distance 
of a hostile object such as a moving battleship, the 
speed at which it is moving, the direction of the wind 
and its force, the height of the tide and the strength 
of the powder. This apparatus is so arranged that 
the changing positions of the distant ship can be 
plotted and all the necessary calculations based on 
these data made for aiming the gun so that a shell 
will hit the spot with mathematical accuracy every 
twenty seconds. The records of target practice show 
that this can be done and the vitals of a ship several 
miles away struck several times within five minutes 
by a pair of such guns. 

Everything in warfare, as has been indicated 
before, is now done at long range. The armies in the 
field, which once rushed at each other's throats with 
sabres, lances and bayonets, now line up in rifle pits 
dug in a few minutes by various methods in which 
the soldiers have been instructed. The repeating 
breech-loading rifles and whirling, jacketed bullets 
that have taken the place of the muzzle-loading, flint- 
lock smooth-bores of a hundred years ago make it 
possible and desirable for lines of troops to fight at 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 211 

considerable distances apart. Machine guns capable 
of pouring a rain of scores of bullets a minute upon 
an advancing foe have added to the discomfort of a 
close approach. The armored automobile has added 
to the flexibility of the death-dealing machinery of a 
modern army. In other ways the automobile has 
found a place in warfare. It can be used for hauling 
supplies and transporting officers quickly from place 
to place. 

Even the uniform has been revised to meet the 
modern conditions of warfare. Invisibility has 
become of greater importance than visibility, now 
that the melee form of righting is passing. Utility 
rather than show is considered the desideratum. 

THE ARMY OF MERCY THAT ACTS IN TIME OF WAR. 

If the dealing of death has been refined, so has the 
care of the wounded. All the discoveries of the 
century that can be made available for the comfort 
and healing of the wounded have been made a part 
of the equipment of the war machine. Surgeons, 
physicians and nurses form a part of every fully 
organized army, and hospitals, implements and medi- 
cines of its equipment. Belligerents mutually agree 
to respect those doing this humane work and the 
equipment provided for the service. As armies have 
been organized and are maintained in times of peace 
for warfare, so has the army of peace been organized 
to assist in time of war. Every civilized country has 
its Red Cross for the care of the afflicted. Its services 
are for the healing of the nations. 



212 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

It used to be thought that the high efficiency and 
cost of the complex modern war machine would 
preclude war on a large scale. It appears to have 
made it easier. Perhaps, it will make it shorter. 
Doubtless, we shall never see another Thirty Years y 
War. 

SUBMARINES. 

The most effective agent of destruction to be 
employed in the great pan-European war now wag- 
ing, according to one of the greatest naval author- 
ities in the world, is not the dreadnought, the super- 
dreadnought, not the aeroplane or dirigible man o' 
war, nor yet the heavy artillery and sixteen-inch 
guns. It is the submarine torpedo. 

That nation which has the greatest number of sub- 
marine torpedo boats will have the advantage in 
naval warfare and the most formidable coast de- 
fenders on earth. The most powerful dreadnought 
afloat is a mere collapsible shell of tinsel in the hands 
of the three or four men who pilot the new type of 
torpedo boat. In three minutes' time and under 
heavy fire the submarine can move unharmed up 
within range of the most heavily armored cruiser and 
discharge a torpedo which will destroy $10,000,000 
worth of fighting machinery and a crew of officers 
and men in a twinkling. 

Great Britain with its sixty-nine submarines has 
the most efficient navy in the world, and the triple 
entente with its 144 submarines already in use and 
its ninety-six under construction has the decided 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 213 

advantage not only in encounters at sea but in the 
defense of harbors and cities. 

Sir Percy Scott, admiral in the British navy, who 
through his inventions made possible the advance in 
marksmanship with heavy guns and increased the 
possibilities of hitting at long range and of broadside 
tiring, says that everything he has done to enhance 
the value of the gun is rendered useless by the advent 
of the latest type of submarines, a vessel which has 
for its principal weapon the torpedo. Dreadnoughts 
and super-dreadnoughts are doomed because they no 
longer can be safe at sea from the submarine nor find 
safety in harbors. 

"The introduction of vessels that swim under 
water," he said, "has in my opinion entirely done 
away with the utility of the ships that swim on top 
of the water. The functions of a war vessel were 
these: Defensively, (1) to attack ships that come 
to bombard our forts, (2) to attack ships that come 
to blockade us, (3) to attack ships convoying a land- 
ing party, (4) to attack the enemy's fleet, (5) to 
attack ships interfering with our commerce; offens- 
ively, (1) to bombard an enemy's ports, (2) to 
blockade an enemy, (3) to convoy a landing army, 
(4) to attack the enemy's fleet, (5) to attack the 
enemy's commerce. 

"The submarine renders 1, 2, and 3 impossible, as 
no man of war will dare to come even within sight 
of a coast that is adequately protected by submarines. 
The fourth function of a battleship is to attack an 
enemy's fleet, but there will be no fleet to attack, as 



214 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

it will not be safe for a fleet to put to sea. Submarines 
and aeroplanes have entirely revolutionized naval 
warfare; no fleet can hide itself from the aeroplane's 
eye, and the submarine can deliver a deadly attack 
in broad daylight. 

' ' In time of war the scouting aeroplanes will 
always be high above on the lookout, and the sub- 
marines in constant readiness. If an enemy is sighted 
the gong sounds and the leash of a flotilla of sub- 
marines will be slipped. Whether it be night or day, 
fine or rough, they must go out in search of their 
quarry ; if they find her she is doomed and they give 
no quarter; they cannot board her and take her as 
prize as in the olden days; they only wait till she 
sinks, then return home without even knowing the 
number of human beings they have sent to the bot- 
tom of the ocean. 

"Not only is the open sea unsafe; a battleship is 
not immune from attack even in a closed harbor, for 
the so-called protecting boom at the surface can 
easily be blown up. With a flotilla of submarines 
commanded by dashing young officers, of whom we 
have plenty, I would undertake to get through any 
boom into any harbor and sink or materially damage 
all the ships in that harbor. ' ' 

This is not a mere theorist or dreamer talking; it 
is the one man in England most supremely versed 
in naval tactics, the man to whom all nations owe 
the present effectiveness of the broadside of eight, 
twelve, and fourteen inch guns and the perfection 
in sighting long range guns. 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 215 

The newest type of submarine torpedo is 100 per 
cent efficient. The torpedo net of steel that used 
to be the ship's defense against torpedoes is now use- 
less. The modern torpedoes need only to come into 
contact with a surface like the torpedo net or the 
armour plate of a battleship to discharge a shell 
which will burst through a two inch armor caisson, 
rupture the hull of a battleship, and sink it in a few 
minutes. 

The torpedo submarines of the modern type have 
a submerged speed of from eight to ten knots an 
hour. Only a small surface, including the bridge or 
conning tower, is exposed, thus making it almost im- 
possible to hit them with the clumsy guns aboard 
ship. The highest type of submarine has a sub- 
merged tonnage of 812 tons and its length is 176 feet. 

Each submarine carries from one to six torpedoes, 
each of which is capable of sinking the most heavily 
armored vessel afloat. The sighter in the conning 
tower moves swiftly up within range of the vessel 
he is attacking and gives the signal for the discharge 
of the torpedo. The men aboard the attacked ship 
have no warning of their impending death except 
a thin sheaf of water that folloAvs on the surface in 
the wake of the submerged torpedo and which lasts 
only an instant. 

By a compressed air arrangement motive power is 
furnished the torpedo in transit for its propellers. 
A gyroscope keeps it on a plane and upright. A 
striker on the nose of the torpedo is released by a 
fan which revolves in the water. The nose of the 



216 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

torpedo strikes the side of the battleship and the 
compact jars the primer of fulminate of mercury. 
The high explosive of gunpowder forces out a shell 
and explodes with it after the shell has penetrated 
the armor. Then the work is done. 

It is generally believed that Portsmouth harbor 
and the fortifications of the Thames in England are 
heavily supplied with torpedoes of the new type. It 
is also believed that the fortifications about the River 
Elbe are thus equipped. If this is a fact the defend- 
ing nation will be able not only to repulse any fleet 
attempting an invasion but also to destroy it. By 
throwing across the Straits of Dover or across the 
lower end of the North sea a flotilla of its powerful 
submarines England can prevent any naval invasion 
of France or England or Belgium by Germany 
should the attacking fleet take this route. 

In the latest type of submarine the United States 
is deficient. There are only twenty-nine submarines 
in the United States naval service at the present 
time and only eighteen under construction. 

The old type of torpedo did not have penetrative 
power sufficient to sink the modern armour clad bat- 
tleship unless it struck under exceptionally favor- 
able circumstances. A large percentage of the de- 
structive power was expended on the outside of the 
hull. Commander Davis of the United States navy 
invented the torpedo that carries its power undimin- 
ished into the interior of the vessel. 

The new torpedoes are provided with special steel 
cutters by which they cut through the strongest steel 





O o 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y., 19 11, 

King Peter of Servia, who recently abdicated the throne in favor of 
his son, Prince Alexandria 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 217 

torpedo net. The torpedo has within it an eight inch 
gun, capable of exploding a shell with a muzzle ve- 
locity of about 1,000 feet a second. The projectile 
carries a bursting charge of a high explosive, and this 
charge is detonated by a delayed-action fuse. When 
the torpedo strikes its target, the gun is fired and 
the shell strikes the outside plating of the ship. Then 
the fuse in the shell's base explodes the charge in 
the shell, immediately after the impact. 

With a small fleet of three under-water fighting 
vessels — say of two or three — an invading or block- 
ading fleet of not more than twenty men-of-war can 
be destroyed within an hour by an otherwise unpro- 
tected harbor or port. 

Germany has a few of these latest style subma- 
rines and if it can rush the construction of the thirty- 
one now being built, it will have a flotilla that will 
protect its harbor towns against invasion. 

France, also with its fifty submarines and thirty- 
one under construction, and its great corps of scout- 
ing aeroplanes, will prove a formidable agent in 
crippling the activities of Germany's big fleet of 
dreadnoughts, armored cruisers and battleships. 
Russia will need its twenty-five submarines for coast 
defense and probably will not send them out of the 
Baltic (or out of the Black sea in the event that Italy 
is drawn into the conflict). 

Undoubtedly, then, the great battles in the pres- 
ent war, on the water at least, will be decided by 
these silently moving, dinky sized, almost imper- 
ceptible submarines which carry the ever destroying 



218 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

torpedoes. And the loss of lives will be more prodi- 
gious than ever. 

MINES IN THE PRESENT WAR. 

The flagship of the flotilla, the scout cruiser Am- 
phion, went confidently on and in time turned and 
headed back toward the English coast undreaming 
of her fate. Suddenly the little cruiser plunged like 
a stricken horse and shook violently as she hit one 
of the German electro contact mines. Instantly 
there was an awful explosion and the expanding 
gases from the mine literally tore the craft in two 
as they rushed upward. Her smokestacks were tossed 
into the air like straws and her guns were shaken 
clear of her deck. Undoubtedly part of the havoc 
was due to the detonation of the Amphion's maga- 
zines by the mine charge. This emphasizes the 
greater hazard that a naval vessel runs, because a 
merchant ship seldom carries explosives. 

Since the loss of the Amphion a German torpedo 
boat was blown up by a German mine in the Baltic, 
and already several neutral steamers have suffered 
in the same way because of drifting contact mines 
in the North Sea. 

Great Britain has now determined to plant similar 
mines in off shore navigable waters, and it is credibly 
reported that Austria, Russia and France have done 
likewise. Indeed, an Austrian steamship already 
has been sunk near Pola. 

To the peace lover this menace to peaceful ship- 
ping is woefully shocking, and yet it is substantially 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 219 

in keeping with an international agreement entered 
into at The Hague after the last conflict in the Far 
East ! We need not mince matters : the United States 
was a party to that understanding. 

This may seem extremely barbarous, for there was 
a day when the submarine mine was utterly ab- 
horred, as Robert Fulton found out early in the nine- 
teenth century when he sought to interest the British 
Admiralty in this manner of annihilating the most 
formidable of fleets. Since then the susceptibilities 
of civilized nations have undergone a change and the 
submarine mine is an accepted and an acceptable in- 
strument of destruction. 

The contact mine, unlike the larger observation 
mine which is deliberately fired from the shore, does 
its damage when actually against the ship to be hurt, 
and therefore it is not necessary to use the same 
quantity of explosive as when the injury is to be in- 
flicted from some distance. Now if contact mines are 
too heavily charged -and too close together the ex- 
plosion of one may detonate the other and thus in 
turn needlessly set off a whole mine field. Again, 
the wider the space between mines the greater the 
chance of the enemy slipping through. Therefore 
to make a whole field effective against an approach- 
ing fleet and to prevent a single vessel from explod- 
ing the entire group — a sacrifice that any determined 
enemy would wilfully make — it is needful to limit 
the charge of the contact mine, so that its reverbera- 
tions when detonated will not affect its neighbors. 

Now for the broad working details. Inside of each 



220 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

contact mine are two or three dry batteries con- 
nected up to an incomplete circuit; in fact, there are 
two gaps in this circuit when the mine is dropped 
into the water. The first circuit breaker is directly 
exposed to the sea, and the two contacts are held 
apart by a block or disc of sugar or some kindred 
soluble material. 

It takes anywhere from thirty to forty minutes 
for the sea water to dissolve this, and then two 
springs push the hitherto separated contacts to- 
gether. Until this is done the mine can be tilted or 
turned upside down without inducing an explosion. 
But with this insulation washed away and the cir- 
cuit breaker closed the igniting current is ready to 
flow to the fulminate of mercury when a second con- 
tact is made by the tilting of the anchored mine about 
seventy degrees. 

This contact may be perfected by a little pendu- 
lum, by the flow of mercury in a small bowl, or by 
the rolling of a metallic ball against a brass ring. Be 
this as it may, the effect is to bridge the gap in the 
electric circuit and to lead the current to the little 
wire in the fulminate of mercury. That current is 
sufficient to heat that wire and set off the detonator 
which starts the explosive chain going. 

One of the restrictions laid upon naval powers at 
The Hague was that no unanchored automatic con- 
tact mines should be laid except when they are so 
constructed as to become harmless one hour or more 
after the person who has laid them ceases to control 
them; and next it was forbidden "to lay anchored 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 221 

automatic contact mines which do not become harm- 
less as soon as they have broken loose from their 
moorings." There are a variety of ways by which 
this can now be accomplished, the result of much 
recent experimenting, especially by the Germans, 
but there is always the chance for a mechanical fail- 
ure of some sort and accordingly these mines must be 
avoided when possible and their field sedulously 
given wide berths by vessels properly warned. 

Fortunately there is a fly in this military oint- 
ment. While hostile shipe cannot see an enemy's 
mine fields below the broken surface of the open sea, 
still it has been proved conclusively that aeronauts 
can look down from their craft and see below the 
surface of the water, and when the bottom is a sandy 
one, capable of reflecting light, the mines show 
plainly in silhouette against the background of the 
sunlit or luminous sea bed. The effort now is to so 
color the mines that they will neutralize the glow of 
the water bed and not be discernible except on the 
brightest of days. 

WIRELESS IN THE WAR. 

Wireless telegraphy is the new force in modern 
warfare which has changed all the old problems of 
communication. Formerly the aim was to capture 
and destroy the enemy's telegraph lines or subma- 
rine cables. Nowadays the matter is not so simple, 
for the wireless zones cover Europe, and ships at 
sea may be in touch with the war office in their cap- 
itals. 



222 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OP WAR 

"The usefulness of wireless in war time," says 
Professor Waldo, "has just been proved in the re- 
call of certain ships after they had left port, war hav- 
ing been declared in the meantime. One ship was re- 
called to New York after proceeding over 500 miles 
on her way across the Atlantic ; and the wireless has 
been active in reaching ships from the European sta- 
tions either for x^urposes of recall or notification that 
the war is on. This invention has complicated prob- 
lems as well as simplified war. 

The stopping of all telegraphic and telephonic 
communication between the belligerents at the first 
breathings of war, and the partial stopping by con- 
trol and censorship of such communications from 
nations at war to non-belligerents, has rendered in- 
valuable messages by wireless across and around the 
regions controlled by the belligerents and especially 
at sea and across the seas. But the bottling up of 
any place so that it cannot hold communication with 
the outside is a thing of the past. The fact that a 
wireless apparatus cannot be easily hidden prevents 
the surreptitious use which might be made of it in 
regions under control of the belligerents; although 
for short-distance communication, such as along 
frontiers or between close-lying countries as in west- 
ern Europe, a small wireless receiving apparatus 
might be secretively used, especially if it were tem- 
porarily strung under cover of the darkness, and 
taken down before daylight. In such work there 
will be a new field for signal-corps work and scout- 
ings. 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 223 
BIG GOVERNMENT STATIONS 

As regards the more powerful land stations, those 
which will keep up communication 500 miles and up- 
wards, these can be easily kept under Government 
supervision; but the use of wireless on ships for 
sending messages up to from 250 to 500 miles, and 
receiving them at still greater distances from power- 
ful land stations, will be subject only to such artifi- 
cial interference as may be put in operation by the 
belligerents. There can be no doubt that the exper- 
ience in the present war will result in the closer 
Government control of private and amateur wire- 
less installation. 

Through the medium of the Eiffel Tower regular 
communication should be maintained with the wire- 
less telegraph station at Moscow or St. Petersburg 
and France and Russia should therefore be able to 
keep in continuous communication, despite any in- 
terruption of the ordinary telegraph service. The 
danger of interference with the wireless service by 
stations of the opposing nations is practically non- 
existent. To commence with, each station would be 
too busily engaged in dealing with its own correspon- 
dence to attempt to prevent another station from 
working, and at best they could hope to overhear 
communications. 

In wireless telegraphy, the adjustment of one cir- 
cuit to another in such a way that the "time-per- 
iods" are the same throughout the system, so that 
electro-magnetic waves possessing a different time- 



224 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

period will produce little or no effect on the system, 
considerably reduces the danger of tapping mes- 
sages, while the provision of secret codes and 
cyphers would make such fragments of messages as 
are overheard unintelligible to an outside party. 

Eiffel Tower station possesses the further advant- 
age that interference is practically impossible, owing 
to the peculiar sound of the signal emitted. In Ger- 
many the principal station is at Norddeich, which 
has a range of about 800 miles by night and 400 by 
day. The Nauen station, near Berlin, might also 
be of considerable service. 

SUCCESS IN BALKAN WAK 

An incident during the recent Balkan War illus- 
trates the remarkable reliability of wireless teleg- 
raphy. During the siege of Adrianople, all commu- 
nication between the city and Constantinople was 
stopped. But shut up in the beleaguered city with 
the imprisoned garrison was a 1% k.w. Marconi 
wireless telegraph station of the portable type, and 
this fortunate circumstance alone enabled her to 
keep in touch with Constantinople, where is installed 
another Marconi station. 

At no time did the station fail, and during the 
time that the city was invested over 450,000 words 
were transmitted to headquarters without a hitch. 
This, too, in spite of the difficulties the Allies at- 
tempted to create by placing one of their stations to 
the westward of Adrianople and another to the east- 
ward, so that they might come as nearly as possible 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 225 

in a direct line between the Adrianople and Con- 
stantinople stations. As soon as the latter com- 
menced calling up Adrianople, or vice verse, the Al- 
lies hammered away at their two stations in a vigor- 
ous but vain attempt to "jam" the Turkish signals. 
The efforts of the Turks were entirely successful, 
and the calls were transmitted and received without 
the slightest inconvenience. 

PORTABLE WIEELESS IN FIELD 

Thanks to Mr. Marconi's genius, and largely to 
his company's enterprise, portable wireless telegra- 
phy is available for field use. It is more than likely 
that the use of this apparatus will help to curtail that 
particularly troublesome form of warfare — guerrilla 
fighting. An army divided by its enemy, as would 
be the case in the present war, would be able to keep 
in touch with all its units, and reconnoitring and 
flanking movements could be carried out with 
greater safety than hitherto possible. 

Portable military stations are designed to be car- 
ried in carts, automobiles, on pack-saddles, and by 
hand, and they are adapted for use on aeroplanes 
and airships, the range of communication being be- 
tween 12 and 350 miles or more, according to the 
type employed. The Marconi stations are ingen- 
iously designed to insure absolute secrecy, the meth- 
od being to change the wave-length of the trans- 
mitter at frequent intervals from one fixed wave- 
length to another in a fraction of a second. 

The operator can therefore change his wave-length 



226 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

or "tune" after every three or four words to any 
of the waves to which his switch has been adjusted 
by sending a code letter indicating to which "tune" 
he was about to change. The operator at the sta- 
tion with which he is communicating, and whose 
receiver is similarly fitted, would be able to follow 
him without difficulty. The wireless service of an 
army, properly organized with such stations as these, 
makes it impossible for any station not informed to 
read messages transmitted. 

AUTOMOBILES IX WAR 

The war in Europe will have the interesting dis- 
tinction in military annals of being the first great 
conflict of any kind in which motor vehicles have 
been largely employed for transportation and field 
service. Officers in automobiles led the German ad- 
vance into Belgium. Rapid-fire guns mounted on 
motor trucks have added to the mobility of the 
German attacking force. Private automobiles have 
been commandeered everywhere and pressed into 
service for scouting purposes. Three hundred Paris 
motor-buses were despatched to the front to carry 
food and ammunition to the army, and London buses 
have been sent to the continent for similar military 
uses. Altogether tens of thousands of motor vehicles, 
from taxicabs to ponderous vans, have been seized 
by the army authorities in all the belligerent coun- 
tries and utilized for warfare. _ 

All this is a far cry from the mule team and the 
horse-drawn service and commissary equipment of 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 227 

previous wars. It marks the extraordinary mechan- 
ical development of warfare and adds largely to the 
effectiveness of an army as a "fighting machine." 
And, including with the motor vehicles on land, the 
aeroplanes and dirigibles aloft, it bears remarkable 
testimony to the influence of the gas engine in mili- 
tary strategy. 

AIRSHIPS IN WAR 

One of the first reports of the hostilities between 
Germany and Prance was the destruction of a Ger- 
man Zeppelin by a French aviator on the French 
frontier. Almost daily reports are received of the 
way aerial craft are used to great advantage in mod- 
ern warfare. 

To destroy a Zeppelin that way, by dashing into 
the huge gas bag, is the ambition of many French 
aviators. Jules Vedrines, the famous French avi- 
ator, who was first to fly at 75 and 100 miles an hour 
and made 109 miles an hour in the Gordon Bennett 
Cup race, at Chicago, in 1912, said that in case of 
war between France and Germany he would prove 
his theory that Zeppelins are not worth more than 
the least aeroplane by flying to either Metz or Strass- 
burg, along the French frontiers, where Zeppelins 
are, and dashing into one. Said Vedrines : 

' ' Give me an hour or two from the time they start 
to take the Zeppelin out of the hangar and I'll start 
from Toul or Verdun and I'll send any Zeppelin to 
join the Deutschland, the two Zeppelins which were 
destroyed in 1910 and 1911." 



228 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

As there are many French aviators who would 
consider it glorious to give their life in such circum- 
stances dirigibles are in serious danger. 

In general the attacks against dirigibles will be 
made with fast aeroplanes equipped with machine 
guns. These aeroplanes, on sighting a dirigible, will 
rise to several hundred feet above it, but at a distance 
of from 3,000 to 5,000 feet, so as to be out of range 
of the dirigible's guns, and, diving, will swiftly pump 
shots on the huge envelope. While the holes of the 
small bullets will not be sufficient to cause the wreck 
of the ship, they will cause loss of gas sufficiently to 
force the airship to retire quickly — or sink. 

To offset this disadvantage it has been planned 
to have a platform with a rail on top of Zeppelins 
and have guns there to fire against aeroplanes ; and 
there have been reports that it was being planned 
to have one or two aeroplanes equipped with guns on 
the platform of the dirigibles ready to start out to 
fight approaching aeroplanes. 

DEVICES OF AMERICAN INVENTION" WILL FIGURE LARGELY 
IN WAR OF THE AIR 

Whatever aerial warfare there will be, it will be 
carried out in large part with devices of American 
invention. It is an ironical fact that the best bomb- 
dropping devices and the best aircraft guns are 
American inventions — inventions which are being 
adopted by all the first and second class powers 
except the United States ! 

The first aeroplane gun to show its efficiency was 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 229 

the Lewis automatic gun, the invention of Lieutenant 
Colonel I. N. Lewis, U. S. A. This gun is air-cooled, 
weighs 25 pounds 6 ounces, and shoots the service 
small-arms ammunition. The rate of firing can be 
adjusted by controlling the gas used in the operation 
from about 300 to 700 a minute. Fifty cartridges 
are placed in a drum and this drum is slipped over a 
spindle on the gun. 

The Lewis gun was tested by the United States 
army authorities and found efficient, but they were 
not interested in acquiring any. The European coun- 
tries were greatly interested, and soon Colonel Lewis 
had offers from England, Russia and Belgium, which 
he accepted. Lieutenant Riley E. Scott, the inventor 
of the Scott bomb-dropping device, went through the 
same experience. Not receiving any encouragement, 
he went to Europe, entered the French Michelin 
bomb-dropping contest and won the first prize, 
placing twelve out of fifteen 15-pound bombs in a 
target of 60 feet diameter from a height of 800 feet. 

Another American invention which is intended to 
enable fast aeroplanes to destroy slower dirigibles 
and aeroplanes may be used. 

This new and most terrible device, the invention 
of Joseph A. Steinmetz, of Philadelphia, a member 
of the Aero Club of America and vice-president of 
the Aero Club of Pennsylvania, is creating a sensa- 
tion in military circles. With this device a fast aero- 
plane practically fishes for other aeroplanes with 
hook and line, and when the hook catches a bomb 
attached to it explodes and shatters the aircraft to 



230 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

which it is hooked. The thing is practical in every 
way. A fast aeroplane has a controlling advantage 
over a slow one, even if the excess of speed is but five 
or ten miles an hour. Likewise almost any standard 
aeroplane has a travelling range great enough to 
permit it to venture out within a radius of from 100 
to 200 miles to attack the enemy's aircraft. In 
neither case does the crew of the attacking aeroplane 
risk more than, possibly not as much as, an ordinary 
scout. Yet how tremendous the possibilities of 
letting the enemy's air fleet out of commission! It 
is yet a costly if not a ghastly experiment. 

Aeroplanes equipped with such devices would be 
a deadly menace to airships, magazines, sheds, ships 
in repair and under construction. Airships equipped 
with larger devices of this type can play havoc with 
sea and land forces, particularly at night, and may 
attack and destroy an enemy's airships and hangars, 
docks, magazines, ships, and terrorize very generally. 
There would be no means of defence against such 
airships except fast aeroplanes armed with guns or 
similar devices. 

One striking feature about this device is its sim- 
plicity and low cost. The mechanical contrivance 
which explodes the bomb whenever one of the barbs 
catches is simple and effective; and the aviator is 
protected from possible difficulties through the 
dangling wires by a simple device which cuts the wire 
when the tension reaches a given figure. 

Mr. Steinmetz constructed 1,000 of these devices, 
and the nations involved in war are vying with each 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 231 

other in bidding for them. Whoever gets them will 
have a great advantage over the other. 

A number of other guns have been developed in 
different countries, and it is remarkable to find that 
several guns have Jbeen invented which can be fired 
from aeroplanes without the least effect from recoil. 
Among the light machine guns adapted for aero- 
planes are the Benet-Mercier and the Hotchkiss. The 
Benet-Mercier is a rapid-fire gun, weighing about 
twenty pounds, capable of firing about three hundred 
shots a minute. Mounted on armored aeroplanes, it 
has given remarkable results. The Hotchkiss gun 
has of late been used in a number of experiments in 
France. In one experiment, last February, the gun 
was mounted on an armored Deperdussin monoplane, 
piloted by Prevost. Mr. Loiseau, who devised a way 
of mounting the gun so that it could be fired over the 
range of the propeller, the aviator standing inside 
of a rail, was the marksman. He operated the gun 
on the ground and in flight. The results were re- 
ported as thoroughly satisfactory. 

Lieutenant Mailf ert, of the French army, has made 
a number of secret trials of a machine gun of revo- 
lutionary nature. The reports state that during the 
trials Lieutenant Mailf ert 's gun flooded a target with 
shots from a height of 2,000 feet and that an aero- 
plane equipped with it would, given a margin of 
speed, be capable of clearing the sky of a squadron 
of aeroplanes in five minutes. 

In the last three months several experiments have 
been made with regular rapid-fire guns mounted on 



232 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

large aeroplanes. One of the experiments in France 
came to light through a 37-millimetre projectile fired 
from an aeroplane hitting a house inhabited by an 
English family and going through the wall early one 
morning. The projectile being blank could not 
explode, and was identified as being from a regular 
37-millimetre Hotchkiss marine gun. Everybody 
was puzzled — there was no explaining how it got 
there until it was found that such a gun had been 
mounted on a large aeroplane constructed by Gabriel 
Voisin and was being tested at Issy-les-Moulineaux. 
The war had hardly broken when reports came 
that aviators had been dropping bombs from aero- 
planes. This is to be expected throughout the war, 
since the nations have not agreed to prohibit it, as 
has been proposed a number of times. 

DEOPPING BOMBS FROM AIRCRAFT NO NEW WRINKLE. 

The idea of dropping bombs from aircraft is an 
old one, and it will be remembered that even before 
the first public aeroplane flight was made the possi- 
bility of its employment for warfare was considered 
at the second peace conference held at The Hague, 
June 15 to October 19, 1907, when a proposal was 
made to agree to prohibit the discharge of projectiles 
and explosives from balloons or by other new 
methods of a similar nature. Later, in 1910-11, ex- 
hibition aviators used to drop oranges on dummy 
battleships, Glenn H. Curtiss having been the first 
to do so. But the art of flying was still in its infancy, 
and it did not seem that it would be possible for many 
years to come for aeroplanes to carry and drop such 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 233 

loads of explosives as could seriously damage any- 
thing. Carrying a load of explosives in an aeroplane 
was in itself dangerous, involving the possibility of 
an explosion in a rough start or landing; dropping 
weights above ten pounds during flight was supposed 
to affect the equilibrium of an aeroplane, and 
dropping of bombs with any accuracy seemed im- 
possible. But these limitations were removed in the 
characteristically speedy way in which all limitations 
are removed in aeronautics. 

In .March, 1912, at St. Louis, Tony Jannus 
dropped Albert Berry, weighing 175 pounds, from 
an aeroplane, demonstrating that a load large enough 
to blow up a battleship could be dropped during 
flight without endangering the life of the pilot. Later 
in the year the Michelin bomb-dropping contests 
induced experiments at bomb dropping which re- 
sulted in Lieutenant Riley E. Scott placing twelve 
out of fifteen bombs in the target and winning the 
$10,000 prize. 

These demonstrations were convincing, but little 
attention was given to the matter by the military au- 
thorities outside of Russia and Germany, where 
bomb-dropping contests were held. But individual 
inventors and military men continued their experi- 
ments, and there were evolved devices and bombs 
which collectively, if not singly, could be said to solve 
the problem. To eliminate the danger of explosion due 
to shock, for instance, bombs were devised, such as 
the Marten-Hale, which must fall a distance to make 
them effective. The Marten-Hale bomb weighs 



234 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

twenty pounds, carries an explosive charge of four 
pounds of trinitrotolusul and 340 steel balls. 

It is now the general opinion that an airship has 
more actual fighting value proportionately than a 
battleship, its ability to operate at night, and its 
excess of speed over the fastest battleship being con- 
sidered factors unequalled in value by the best fea- 
tures of battleships. Adding the fact that the best 
of airships can be built, housed and operated for a 
year at a fraction of the cost of a battleship, it is not 
surprising that Germany's aeronautical programme 
involves the expenditure of $35,000,000; and Eng- 
land, France, Italy and Russia are constantly adding 
to their airship fleets. It may be added that the 
problem of defending airships from aeroplanes, 
which perplexed the authorities up to a year ago, has 
been solved by making the aeroplane auxiliaries of 
airships. 

THE POET'S DREAM 

For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see, 

Saw the Vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be ; 

Saw the heavens fill with commerce, argosies of magic sails, 

Pilots of the purple twilight, dropping down with costly bales; 

Heard the heavens fill with shouting, and there rain 'd a ghastly 
dew 

From the nation 's airy navies grappling in the central blue ; 

Far along the world-wide whisper of the South-wind rushing 
warm, 

"With the standards of the people plunging thro' the thunder- 
storm ; 

Till the war-drum throbb'd no longer, and the battleflags were 
furl'd 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 235 

In the Parliament of man, the Federation of the world. 

There the common sense of most shall hold a fretful realm in awe, 

And the kindly earth shall slumber, lapt in universal law. 

— Tennyson. 
ZEPPELIN AIESHIPS 

English military experts discount the comparative 
strength of contending armies as the factor which 
will result in victory. They place the greatest empha- 
sis — and, as Englishmen, alarmed emphasis — upon 
the great fleet of Zeppelin airships which Germany 
is holding in reserve, and which these experts do not 
hesitate to say may win the decisive battle for the 
forces of the Kaiser. 

The facts upon which the experts base their reas- 
oning are these: 

1. It is known that Germany has a £eet of eighty 
monster Zeppelin airships ready for use in the pres- 
ent war. 

2. That undoubtedly Germany will make use of 
these monster machines of death. 

3. That if the expectations, based upon past per- 
formances of these dirigibles, are realized there is 
no reason why they should not jDrove to be the cause 
of German victory. 

In discussing this unknown equation in modern 
warfare, experts point out that each dirigible can 
carry a complement of from ten to twenty-five 
men, and that they have a carrying capacity of from 
fifteen to twenty-five tons of explosives. 

These great machines are capable of rising thous- 
ands of feet above the range of any known gun, and 



236 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF "WAR 

even if they are pierced by bullets before they get 
out of range little or no damage will be done them 
unless the enveloi3es of at least six of their eighteen 
compartments are badly shattered. 

The great machines are capable of making from 
fifty-five to sixty miles an hour and are capable of 
sustained flight for thirty-six hours. 

For years Germany has been perfecting these air- 
ships and has been practicing the art of hitting a 
target with explosives thrown from great heights. 
The plan which will be likely to be followed by the 
German army is outlined as follows: 

At the rear of the battle line drawn up by the 
troops will be a dirigible station, protected in every 
possible way from attack. At this station there will 
be tons of explosives, which the German chemists 
have worked to make the most deadly known to 
science. 

All the appliances for putting the dirigibles to- 
gether and for inflating them with non-explosive gas, 
the component parts of which are a secret closely 
guarded by the German general staff, will be dis- 
tributed in the most convenient manner. 

As the great battle begins, the dirigibles will be 
loaded with explosives, trained aviators will be as- 
signed to their places and the great machines will 
begin their ascent, ready for war. They will prob- 
ably be dispatched in squads of various numbers. 
The experts figure on four squads of twenty dir- 
igibles each. 

The plan of action will be to start the great bal- 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 237 

loons away on a course describing a monster circle. 
Hovering over the lines of the enemy they will drop 
their tons of powerful explosives upon the helpless 
human beings beneath. When there is need for re- 
plenishment the balloons will circle back to their 
supply station, their places being taken meanwhile 
by another squad of twenty balloons, and so on. 

One of the main advantages of the new style of 
Zeppelin is the fact that the original hydrogen gas, 
which is inflammable, has been substituted by a new 
gas which has three times the power of hydrogen, 
and which, at the same time, is non-inflammable. 

This gas has a liquid form. It is carried in cylin- 
ders and in order to produce the gas all that is neces- 
sary is to let the air come into contact with the 
liquid. It is therefore possible for the dirigibles to 
refill their compartments in midair. 

The military experts declare that it is of the great- 
est importance that the air fleet of the allies shall 
locate the supply station from which the dirigibles 
are to be operated. If this is done bombs may be 
dropped upon the explosives intended for the Zep- 
pelins, thus causing the destruction of the entire 
camp and possibly of many of the dirigibles as well. 

FULL WAR STRENGTH OF THE NATIONS 
THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE 

Germany — With its 4,600,000 land troops, its 174 
warships of available classes, manned by 118,000 
sailors and marines. 



238 THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 

Austria — With its 2,500,000 land troops, 89 avail- 
able war ships and 46,000 sailors and marines. 

Italy— With 1,100,000 troops, 74 warships and 43,- 
000 men, maintaining neutrality for defensive pur- 
poses, but reckoned as the ally of Germany and 
Austria in the event of universal European warfare. 

Slavonia, Croatia, Herzegovina, Bulgaria and Al- 
bania (of the Balkan group) — With probably 1,200,- 
000 troops and a few warships. 

THE TRIPLE ENTENTE 

Great Britain — With 1,400,000 land troops avail- 
able in universal conflict, 423 warships of all types 
and 228,000 sailors and marines. 

Eussia — With 5,500,000 land troops, 217 warships 
of all types and 176,000 sailors and marines. 

France — With 4,000,000 land troops, 192 warships 
of all types and 158,000 sailors and marines. 

Servia, Roumania, Montenegro (of the Balkan 
group) — With 1,100,000 land troops and uncertain 
number of warships, but very small. 

These are the countries. that were actually brought 
face to face with impending war as a consequence 
of decisive action on the part of Germanv, the chief 
aggressor. 

OTHERS DRAWN IN 

Declaration on the part of other important nations 
of Europe, however, indicated that the Triple En- 
tente would have the moral and perhaps physical, 
support of these nations : 



THE MERCILESS MACHINERY OF WAR 239 

Norway — With 800,000 land troops, 37 warships 
and 32,000 men. 

Sweden — With 650,000 land troops, 47 warships 
and 35,000 men. 

Denmark — With 540,000 land troops, 39 warships 
and 30,000 men. 

Holland — With 615,000 land troops, 52 warships 
and 39,000 men. 

Belgium — With 370,000 land troops, 47 warships 
and 32,000 men. 

Spain — With 1,200,000 land troops, 84 warships 
and 43,000 men. 

Portugal— With 400,000, 22 warships and 17,000 
men. 

Greece — With 1,100,000 land troops, 35 warships 
and 27,000 men. 

Turkey — With 1,700,000 land troops, 49 warships 
and 42,000 men. 

These figures reflect the estimates made by British 
officials to whose direction the land and sea fighting 
forces of the nation is entrusted. 

The only countries of Europe which, from present 
indications, are not likely to be actually involved 
in a general war between the groups of dominating 
powers and their allies are Switzerland, which might 
recruit 400,000 troops; Heligoland and Monaco — the 
one in the Baltic and regarded as continually neutral, 
the other mainly celebrated as the location of Monte 
Carlo, the greatest gambling casino in the world. 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT BETWEEN 
FRANCE AND GERMANY. 

THE ANCIENT BEGINNING 

The history of Germany and the history of France 
as separate nations begins in 843, and the history of 
the woes and tribulations of Alsace and Lorraine as 
a buffer state between the two, and as conquered 
first by the one and then by the other, begin soon 
after that same year 843. That was one thousand 
and seventy-one years ago. The present campaign 
of the Germans and the French in Alsace-Lorraine 
is therefore the continuation of a struggle over one 
thousand years old. It is likely to continue in some 
form or another just as long as there is a France 
and a Germany in existence, even unto another 
thousand years. 

The facts of geographical position have created 
the problem. It is a problem which will remain un- 
solved and unsolvable as long as the River Rhine 
flows and the Voges Mountains stand. France says 
that the river is her true eastern frontier; Germany 
says the frontier lies beside the mountains. The 
two countries have sometimes settled it one way, 
after a bloody war and then a proclamation of peace. 
But the sons or the grandsons have begun all over 
again to fight it out and settle it the other way — 

240 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 241 

by another proclamation of peace, after one side, con- 
quered and humbled, had to sue for peace. 

GRANDSONS OF CHARLEMAGNE BEGAN IT OVER A 
THOUSAND YEARS AGO, 

It was in 843 that the three grandsons of Charle- 
magne, fighting among themselves, decided to end 
it by dividing their grandfather's possessions among 
them. They acted on that ancient principle that the 
lands, and the peoples dwelling upon them, tilling 
the soil in time of peace and fighting the battles in 
time of war, were the private property of the sov- 
ereign, ruling by the ' ' divine right of kings. ' ' Charle- 
magne had ruled the whole of Europe as one united 
government from his capital at Aachen — the Aix la 
Chapelle of to-day which belongs to Prussia. The 
private possessions of the Pope of Italy alone were 
excepted. 

Charlemagne's son, Louis le Debonnaire, was too 
weak to hold together such a heterogeneous empire 
of peoples of different race and temperament and 
speaking different tongues, their only bond being 
an official religion — that of the sovereign — and a 
common government. He was too weak even to rule 
in his own family. Long before he was dead his sons 
were quarreling over their inheritance. 

The one who was the strongest, called Louis the 
German, had the first choice in the division and he 
became the first King of the Germans. The second 
strongest, Charles the Bold, had second choice, and 
he became the first King of the Franks, the people 



242 THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 

of modern France. These two brothers took land 
which formed a compact whole and which could be 
easily defended. The subjects of Charles all spoke 
one language, those of Louis all spoke another. 

THE INHERITANCE OF THE WEAKER 

The third brother, Lothair, the weakest, had to 
take what was left of his father's empire, and that 
included what is now comprised in Holland, Belgium, 
Switzerland, Luxemburg, Alsace, Lorraine, and a 
small strip of northern Italy. It was made up of 
many different nationalities. It could not be easily 
defended because the Alps broke it into two parts, 
and the narrow strip along the Rhine from the Alps 
to the North Sea which kept the possessions of Louis 
from touching those of Charles was too great a prize 
not to be coveted by both of the two stronger 
brothers. They soon began to fight one another 
about it, each to take it from Lothair. And the 
troubles of the buffer states began. 

The mountaineers of Switzerland wrested them- 
selves free from Lothair 's kingdom in the thirteenth 
century and have been a republic ever since. The 
Hollanders gained their independence under Wil- 
liam of Orange and formed a republic in 1648, but 
the successors of Charles the Bold ruling in France 
conquered them later, and it was not until 1815 that 
they were free again. Belgium then formed a part 
of Holland, making it too powerful for a buffer state 
in the eyes of the great powers, so Belgium was sep- 
arated in 1833. 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 243 

Luxemburg was promised to France by Prussia if 
France kept out of the Prussian- Austrian war of 
1866, but when the war was finished the successors 
of Louis the German would not let it go to the suc- 
cessors of Charles the Bold. Luxemburg was then 
made independent of both and her fortresses dis- 
mantled that she herself should not be tempted to 
fight on either side. The small strip of northern 
Italy which belonged to the kingdom of Lothair was 
after many vicissitudes incorporated into the union 
of the Italian states under Victor Emmanuel II. The 
bond was such a natural one that other states have 
no chance of disturbing it. 

ALSACE-LOERAINE IN THE BALANCE OF EVEEY WAE 

Alsace and Lorraine have alone remained of Lo- 
thair 's kingdom to be fought over by the two great 
nations on either side. Together they cover an area 
of 5,601 square miles. The maximum length from 
north to south is 145 miles; the maximum breadth 
is 24 miles. It may be compared to Hudson River 
Valley from Albany to New York. It is not an ex- 
tensive territory but practically every war in Europe 
since the passing of Charlemagne has been concerned 
with it. 

Republican France, banker to-day for despotic 
Russia in the present war, was the banker, Catholic 
in faith, for Protestant Sweden and in the Thirty 
Years War of the seventeenth century, which 
Sweden fought against Austria and Germany, Swe- 
den won and the spoils fell to the banker, France 



244 THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 

acquiring by the Treaty of Westphalia which closed 
the war in 1648, all of Alsace with the exception of 
the city of Strassburg. Germany had to give it up, 
as well as confirm France in the possession of Metz, 
in Lorraine, at this time a private appendage of the 
sovereign of Austria. 

In 1681, during a lull of peace in the tormented 
provinces, Louis XIV. of France quietly surprised 
Strassburg and took it, so that France had that prov- 
ince entire. It was not until after the first French 
Revolution that the whole of Alsace and Lorraine 
went to France. 

One must remember this fact. It easily explains 
what seems to so many the impenetrable mystery 
of the loyalty and devotion of Alsace-Lorraine to 
France after forty-four years under the government 
of Germany. What is spoken of as love for France 
could more properly be described as a belief in the 
rights of man upon which the institutions of the 
French Republic are founded. 

As soon as war was declared between France and 
Prussia, July 15, 1870, Alsace-Lorraine became the 
theatre of operations. The first decisive battle of 
the war was fought in Alsace at Woerth-sur-Sauer 
Aug. 6, 1870, the French under Marshal MacMahon 
retreating before the Germans, led by the Crown 
Prince, afterward Kaiser Frederick, father of Kaiser 
William II. 

Metz, the capital of Lorraine, and a march of only- 
fifteen days from Paris — nearer to the French cap- 
ital than the English port of Plymouth is to London 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 245 

— was the next point in the line of the German at- 
tack. France had an army of 200,000 men near its 
strong fortress under the command of Marshal Ba- 
zaine, considered the best officer of Napoleon III. 
It was believed to be an invincible machine. 

The battle of Courcelles, Aug. 14, was the first act 
of the great battle drama around Metz and important 
to the Germans because they were able to force Ba- 
zaine backward and cut off his retreat to Verdun on 
the Meuse River, French reinforcements being in 
that neighborhood. The German army, to frustrate 
the plan of Bazaine and isolate him, crossed the Mo- 
selle several miles above Metz, mainly at Pont-a- 
Mousson, and on the 16th gained the territory south 
of the road from Gravelotte to Mars-la-Tour. 

When Bazaine discovered he was surrounded he 
gave battle, his soldiers making the attack energeti- 
cally at Mars-la-Tour in an attempt to break through 
and get to Verdun. His army was stopped in retreat 
and two days later met the Germans at the great 
battle of Gravelotte, on Aug. 18. 

The Germans had brought on reinforcements up 
to the number of 230,000. The King of Prussia, after- 
ward Emperor William I., was there with his sons, 
the Crown Prince, (the Emperor Frederick) and 
Prince Karl (the "Red Prince"), the Crown Prince 
of Saxony (later the King) and Prince August of 
Wurtemberg. Field Marshal von Moltke was in 
command and Bismarck was there as a spectator. 
One of the commanders was Gen. von. Goeben, after 
whom was named the battleship Goeben, which made 



246 THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 

a heroic dash from Messina a few days ago and is 
now reported to be in the Dardanelles. 

SIEGES OF METZ AND STRASSBTIRG 

The French had about 180,000 men; the Germans 
sustained greater losses as they took the offensive, 
Bazaine retreating into the fortress of Metz. He 
held out all through the month of September and 
made several sorties in an effort to break through ' 
the German lines and receive the reinforcements 
Napoleon III. had despatched to him. The Germans 
lost some three thousand men, but they kept him 
bottled up. He capitulated with 170,000 men on the 
evening of Oct. 26, 1870. 

Strassburg was even more stubborn and held out 
for three months before it was forced to surrender. 
It is an ancient German city, famous for its univer- 
sity which Goethe attended, equally famous for its 
gooseliver pies, so delicious that both German and 
French soldiers and statesmen, poets and philoso- 
phers will travel far for them. 

When Thiers, coming as the Ambassador of 
France to sue for peace from Germany, Bismarck 
laid down as the first stipulation that Alsace-Lor- 
raine should be the price of peace. France was help- 
less and had to let the provinces go. But she im- 
mediately began a campaign of sentiment to get them 
back again. And as sentiment is the odd trick in the 
game of life, whether it relates to statecraft or com- 
merce, the old trick which will spoil the most wisely 
laid plans sometimes, so sentiment in France and 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 247 

reciprocated in Alsace-Lorraine has baffled and de- 
feated the German statesmen for forty-four years. It 
may seriously affect the success of the German arms 
in the present war. 

TRIED TO "KILL BY KINDNESS " 

It was Bismarck's idea to treat the two provinces 
with the utmost kindness and benevolence. The 
Ivaiserin's cousin, Prince von Hohenlohe, became the 
Governor, and although he was a dictator, his rule 
was kindly. Rights of citizenship were showered 
upon the inhabitants and they were given their own 
Parliament in 1874. The dictatorship was abolished 
in 1902. Alsace-Lorraine was given representation 
in the Diet at Berlin. Germany was "killing the 
provinces with kindness." 

The people did not take kindly to the kindness. 
Between 1880 and 1885 50,000 natives emigrated 
from the two provinces into France and the emigra- 
tion has kept up more or less ever since. In the for- 
eign legions of Prance men from these German-held 
provinces are enrolled in large numbers. They visit 
their relatives back in the old homes and Germany 
has complained that they returned to Prance with 
military information which Berlin did not intend for 
Paris to have. 

The statute erected in Paris in honor of the city 
of Strassburg, the old German city which was held 
for 200 years by Prance, has been draped in mourn- 
ing and decorated with mourning wreaths since 1871. 
The women of Strassburg have worn mourning head- 



248 THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 

dresses ever since that time, too. The mourning has 
just been laid aside during the last few days, when 
French troops have again marched into Alsace-Lor- 
raine. 

The German Kaiser became thoroughly disgusted 
with the sentimental longings of the province for 
France in spite of all his blandishments and display 
of liberty, and in 1911 the constitution he had gra- 
ciously granted was taken away and Prussia took 
over direct control. 

The fact that he had the personal authority to 
grant the constitution and the personal authority to 
revoke the grant is a simple explanation of all the 
anti-German sentiment in Alsace-Lorraine. The 
constitution was theirs only during the Kaiser's 
pleasure. 

THE "ZABEBN" AFFAIR 

It was only in January of the present year that 
we had the "Zabern affair," which brought a flood 
of light upon conditions in Alsace and Lorraine. A 
young German officer, stationed at Zabern, Lieut. 
Baron von Foerstner, incensed at the mocking taunts 
of the populace in Zabern, the little Alsatian town 
which has been the scene of bloody battles for ten 
centuries, ordered his men to charge upon the crowd. 
It was a grim story that the only victim was a de- 
crepit man, caught and sabred as he was hobbling 
away on his crutches. 

The young officer received a reprimand and a pun- 
ishment — made as pleasant as possible. The Reich- 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 249 

stag in Berlin stormed and raved and passed a vote 
of censure upon the Imperial Chancellor that such 
things could happen in any part of Germany. The 
Chancellor met the storm with serenity. It did not 
affect him. The Reichstag's censure cannot dismiss 
him. He trembles only at a frown from the Kaiser. 
This can mean dismissal and disgrace. 

In Lorraine one sees the slender physique and the 
vivacious temperament of the French, but the skull 
formation of the Teuton. In Alsace, there is the 
giant frame and the broad face of the Teuton, with 
the round skull of the French. The two peoples are 
in reality a mixture of both. They could love the 
Germans or the French with equal facility. They 
speak the German language in large majority — that 
is cited as the reason why they should certainly love 
the Germans more than the French. But it has now 
been some time since the teaching of French to the 
children was prohibited as well as using French uni- 
forms on the stage or using the French language on 
the shop signs. The language of the children soon 
becomes that of the parents, and the language forced 
by law upon commerce will ere long become the 
language of the home. 

THE DECLARATION OF THE EIGHTS OF MAN 

The reason why Alsace-Lorraine is French to-day 
instead of German is on account of the Declaration 
of the Rights of Man, and because the German people 
are not the German Government. They have noth- 
ing to do with the control of the policy of the Em- 



250 THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 

pire. The Kaiser and the Chancellor, whom he 
chooses and dismisses at will, do it all. Germany is 
rnled not by a Parliament elected by the people, but 
by an Emperor and his army of soldiers. It may not 
be a bad thing for Germany — in fact, many Germans 
consider that it is the cause of the Emperor's present 
commanding position. But Alsace-Lorraine has 
known something different under France and it will 
never be contented with anything else but this 
" something different." What that is to be is known 
only to the fate of war. 

Germany has many times been advised by Europe 
to give Alsace-Lorraine back to France. But to Ger- 
mans this sounds as ludicrous as if Great Britain 
were counselled to return Gibraltar to Spain, or 
France were told to give Calais back to England, to 
whom is used to belong. To return Alsace-Lorraine 
to France — return it peacefully and to insure further 
peace to the German Empire — has been unthinkable 
to the Kaiser and the Germans. They say that they 
bought it at Gravelotte, Mars-la-Tours and Sedan, 
and that its connection with the empire is the last 
word in irrevocability. The subject is not even de- 
batable. 

It is not alone that Metz, so strongly fortified by 
German guns, stands on the road to Paris, a march 
of only fifteen days. It is not alone that the Vosges 
Mountains now form the boundary of France instead 
of the Rhine. Alsace-Lorraine stands to Germany 
as a symbol of her new empire, forty-four years old. 
The loss of Alsace-Lorraine might mean the return 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 251 

of Germany to the realms of poetry and philosophy 
where she reigned supreme in other days. 

RIVAL ARMAMENTS 

A great factor in England's union with Russia and 
France was Germany's increasing naval and military 
power. The triple alliance had its beginning in the 
European settlement during the first decade that 
followed the defeat of France by Prussia in 1870, 
and the creation of the German Empire. It origin- 
ally included only Austria-Hungary and Germany, 
and was aimed by Bismarck at Russia, which already 
had begun to draw close to France in European 
affairs. This treaty provided that each of the sig- 
natories should help the other in the event of. an 
attack by Russia. By this method Bismarck hoped 
to neutralize Russian help to France in the event of 
an attempt by France to recover the territory which 
had been wrested from it by Germany in the Franco- 
Prussian war. 

Subsequently Bismarck, forever on the watch to 
strengthen the international situation of Germany, 
convinced Italy that it was to her interest to enter 
into alliance for protection against France. Thus it 
was that Italy was induced to join a combination of 
powers with which she was not in thorough sympathy. 

There is only one power in Europe with which 
Italy has a standing quarrel, based upon a vital issue. 
That is Austria. The Italian struggle for unification 
is not yet completed. A part of Italy — known as 
Italy Irredenta, or Unredeemed Italy — is still under 



252 THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 

Austrian rule, and this fact is the basis of an unceas- 
ing agitation against Austria among the Italian 
people. 

A few years ago there was a notable revival of this 
agitation as a result of the closing by the Austrian 
authorities of the Italian faculties in several Italian 
university cities under Austrian rule — such as 
Trieste and Fiume. The outcome of the administra- 
tive measures applied to suppress Italian nationality 
were a series of riots on the Austrian side of the 
boundary, which were suppressed only by the display 
of overwhelming military force. This only smoth- 
ered the fires of revolt. 

On the Italian side there was a strong and vo- 
ciferous demand for a rupture with Austria, and 
energetic measures to secure the rights of Italians 
living under the flag of the Hapsburgs. The dis- 
turbances on either side almost created a situation 
which would have made the continuance of Italy as 
a member of the Triple Alliance impossible. Never- 
theless, when the time came for the renewal of the 
agreement, three or four years later, Italian states- 
manship remained so firmly convinced of the useful- 
ness of the ill-assorted association that the treaty 
was renewed without difficulty. 

With regard to Austria and Germany the combina- 
tion is more natural, inasmuch as both countries are, 
roughly speaking, Teutonic. This does not quite 
apply to Austria-Hungary, however. The Slavs of 
that country are not eager to be aligned on the side 
of Germany in any struggle that would involve 



THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 253 

action adverse to the interests of a Slavic people, as 
in the present instance. 

Hungary, an integral part of the dual empire and 
possessing equal rights with Austria in many re- 
spects, is not especially anxious to pull chestnuts out 
of the fire for either the German or the Austrian 
kaiser. The Hungarians, however, hate the Russians 
even more cordially than they hate the Germans, 
because they remember that their war for separation 
from Italy failed in 1845 because of Russia's aid to 
Austria. Therefore the Hungarians are naturally 
eager to pay off: the old score, even if necessary with 
the help of Germany. 

HOW PAEIS IS NOW DEFENDED 

In analyzing the military situation on the French 
frontier, there is a tendency among American writers 
to assume that if the French were badly beaten in 
two or three engagements on the line of their Dun- 
kirk-Lille-Mauberge, Hirson-Verdun-Nancy line, 
and were forced back from that line, the same thing 
would happen that happened in 1870. That is to say, 
the main body of the French army would be forced 
back upon Paris in order to defend the capital from 
attack. 

A writer in the "Courrier des Etats-Unis" points 
out that this would not be the case in 1914. The 
opinion, he says, is founded on MacMahon's maneu- 
ver in 1870, the direct result of which (the doubling 
up of MacMahon's army in an attempt to defend 
Paris) was the disaster at Sedan. A great fault of 



254 THE AGE-LONG CONFLICT 

the French strategy in 1870 was the failure to cover 
Paris independently. 

This mistake will not be committed a second time. 
France has been schooled in defeat. Paris today not 
only has its immediate defenses, but its outlying de- 
fenses. All these will be found thoroughly manned 
and fortified. The French army of the east — that is 
to say, the forces now massed on the German and 
Belgian border — will not be obliged to fall back 
toward Paris to defend the city. 

Paris is today one of the most strongly fortified 
cities in the world. And the army of the east (or 
what remained of it) would be able, even in case of 
defeat, to operate in any direction that it chose. 

These eventualities have all been provided for by 
the French tactics. Another seven weeks ' promenade 
to Paris is out of the question, even if Gen. Joffre 
and Sir John French should be beaten at the outset. 



HAPSBURGS-ROMANOVS- 
HOHENZOLLERNS. 

THREE FAMILIES AND THEIR COST TO EUROPE 

The Emperor of Austria, the German Kaiser, the 
Czar of Russia — these are three of the men whom 
fate has chosen for the most terrible game the world 
has seen. 

Hapsburg, Hohenzollern, Romanov — one, or two, 
perhaps all three of these ancient royal families must 
receive, during the period now upon us, a blow that 
will dim their glory. There are, too, rumblings of 
revolt against the rulers. 

What, then, are these king-families! In the first 
place, Francis Joseph is not a pure Hapsburg. He is 
descended from that house only in the female line, 
from Maria Theresa who, late in the eighteenth cen- 
tury, married Francis Stephen, Duke of Lorraine. 
"With that marriage, the house of Hapsburg became 
extinct, its place being taken by that of Hapsburg- 
Lorraine. 

But since Francis Joseph has inherited so many 
of the Hapsburg characteristics — the Hapsburg jaw, 
the Hapsburg lip and the Hapsburg misfortune — 
and since he is always thought of in connection with 
that most unhappy of royal families, interest is 
attached, now more than ever before, to the entrance 

255 



256 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 

of the Hapsburgs upon the stage of international 
affairs. 

On the banks of the beautiful river Aar, near the 
place where it loses itself in the waters of the Rhine, 
there once stood a mighty pile of stone called Ha- 
bichtsbnrg, which means "Hawk's castle." It was 
built in 1020 by Werner, bishop of Strassburg, and 
his brother, Radbot, who founded the Abbey of Muri. 
Like many great men, Werner and Radbot claimed 
a great ancestry, and they traced their descent 
through Count Guntram back to noble knights in the 
courts of the Merovingians. Lineage was proof of 
the divine right to rule. 

Whatever his ancestry may have been, Radbot was 
destined to found an illustrious race. His son Wer- 
ner, and his grandson Otto, were called Counts of 
Habichtsburg, or Hapsburg, as the name came to be 
spelled. And they and their descendants increased 
the area of the lands of Habsburg, or Hapsburg, to 
use the popular form of the word. Otto was made 
landgrave of upper Alsace ; Hebert of Hapsburg, in 
the twelfth century, became Count of Zurich and 
j)rotector of the Monastery of Sackeringen, and 
obtained lands in the Cantons of Unterwalden and 
Lucerne, and his son Randolph received the county 
of Aorgan. 

Throughout the generations the Hapsburgs in- 
creased in strength and dignity, their real greatness 
being established in 1273, when Rudolph ascended 
the German throne. He was a just and powerful 
King. Defeating and killing the King of Bohemia, 



HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 257 

Ottakar II., he gave to his sons the duchies of Au- 
stria and Syria, which he had won. 

START A BITTER FEUD 

The next great event in the history of the race of 
nomadic kings from the hawk's castle was the suc- 
cession to the throne left empty by the death of 
Albert, Rudolph's son, of Henry of Luxemburg. It 
was this that inaugurated the bitter feud between 
the houses of Hapsburg and Luxemburg, a feud that 
today is by no means dead. 

The next Hapsburg King of Germany, Frederick 
the Fair, had a short and troublesome reign. Chosen 
successor to Henry of Luxemburg by a minority of 
the electors in 1314, in 1322 he was conquered in 
battle and imprisoned by Louis of Wittlesbach, Duke 
of Bavaria, who reigned over Germany in his stead. 

The Hapsburgs did not again reach the German 
throne until 1438. Then Albert of Hapsburg in- 
herited from his father-in-law, King Sigismund, the 
kingdoms of Hungary and Bohemia, and was chosen 
and crowned King of Germany. 

This connection of the Hapsburgs with the Ger- 
man throne lasted until the dissolution of the Holy 
Roman Empire in 1806. They grew steadily in 
power, and their reign resulted in the extension of 
the empire to limits that amazed and terrified the ' 
rest of the world. Charles V. was, in respect to terri- 
tory, the greatest of the Hapsburg German emperors, 
ruling over the Netherlands, Spain, Sardinia, Naples,. 



258 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 

Sicily, Milan, Friesland, Utrecht, Groningen, Gel- 
derlaud, Franche-Comte and part of Alsace. 

But the branch of the Hapsburgs in which the 
world now is chiefly interested does not descend from 
the fortunate King, Charles V. It was his younger 
brother, Ferdinand I., who established that tragic 
family, the Austrian Hapsburgs. 

And here may be mentioned an event that occurred 
in the 19th century — the uttering of the much-dis- 
cussed curse by Countess Karolyn against the reign- 
ing sovereign, Francis Joseph. Driven to desper* 
ation by the stern suppression of the Hungarian 
revolutionists after the war of 1809 and by the death 
of her son, she called down vengeance on the young 
Emperor, saying : 

May heaven and hell blast his happiness! Mar 
his family be exterminated! May he be smitten in 
the persons of those he loves! May his life be 
wrecked and may his children be brought to ruin ! 

ANOTHER HAPSBURG TRAGEDY 

Many superstitious people and many people not 
ordinarily given to superstition have dwelt on what 
they believe to be the fulfilment of this curse. They 
point, of course, to Austria's present position, facing 
with her one ally the hostile array of a large part of 
Europe. And they cite the assassination which pre- 
ceded the war and Was its immediate cause. They 
are able to enumerate the other calamities that have 
overtaken the Hapsburgs since the Karolyn curse, 
and which were listed as follows by a Vienna news- 



HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 259 

paper at the time of the assassination of the Empress 
Elizabeth, which itself was another of the great 
Hapsburg tragedies: 

On Jan. 30, 1889, Crown Prince Rudolph took Ins 
own life in his hunting box at Meyerling. In May, 
1897, Sophie, Duchesse d'Alencon, at one time the 
affianced bride of Ludwig II. of Bavaria, was burned 
to death in Paris. 

On June 16, 1867, the Emperor Maximilian of 
Mexico, the Empress' brother-in-law, was shot by a 
firing party at Queretaro. His consort, the Belgian 
Princess Marie-Charlotte, lost her reason, and has 
been for the last 30 years under restraint at the 
Chateau of Bouchot. 

Archduke William Francis Charles died in the 
summer of 1894 at Baden, near Vienna, from in- 
juries sustained through a fall from his horse. Arch- 
duke John of Tuscany, who had resigned his rank 
and taken the name of John Orth, disappeared on 
the high seas off the coast of South America. King 
Ludwig II. of Bavaria, the Empress' cousin, com- 
mitted suicide on June 13, 1886, drowning himself 
in the Lake of Starnberg in a fit of insanity. Tragedy 
confronted them in every generation. 

Count Ludwig of Trani, Prince of the two Sicilies, 
husband of Duchess Matilda in Bavaria, a sister of 
the Empress, committed suicide at Zurich. Arch- 
duchess Matilda, daughter of Field Marshal Arch- 
duke Albert, was burned to death in her father's 
palace as the result of a blazing log from the fire 
having set fire to her ball dress. Archduke Ladislas, 



260 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 

son of the Archduke Joseph, came to grief while 
hunting by an accidental discharge of his gun. 

Whatever may be the views of the superstitious 
as to the Karolyn curse, the history of the Haps- 
burgs from the death in 1564 of Ferdinand I., the 
founder of the Austrian line, is such that the sorrow- 
ful lives and violent deaths of the Hapsburgs of our 
own time seem inevitable. Death was ever in their 
wake and tragedy upon their trail. 

The father of Ferdinand I. w r as the weak and 
profligate Philip the Handsome, and his mother was 
Johanna the Mad. His daughter Mary became 
insane. His son, who reached the throne as Maxi- 
milian II., married his cousin Mary. 

And this marriage is an example of the tendency 
which biologists believe has done more harm to the 
Austrian royal family than any curse of a bereaved 
mother. On down through the generations to the 
present day, the Hapsburgs have intermarried to an 
extent almost certain to produce physical and mental 
deterioration. 

In the present generation appears the "Hapsburg 
lip." The first record of this characteristic feature 
was in the 14th century. It may be recognized in 
Francis Joseph, but it was more strikingly evident 
in the Archduke Albert, who won distinction in the 
Italian wars of 1866 and died in 1896. And it is the 
most conspicuous feature of the present King of 
Spain, who, like Francis Joseph, can trace his an- 
cestry back to Philip the Handsome and Johanna the 
Mad. 



HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 261 
THE HOHENZOLLERN CHRONICLES 

The story of the Hohenzollerns is a more cheerful 
chronicle. They take their name from a castle which 
stood upon the hill of Zollern, near Hochingen, on the 
borders of the Black forest. Of course, the counts 
of Hohenzollern claimed illustrious ancestors, 
tracing their descent from the Colonna family of 
Rome, but it is nevertheless true that during the first 
600 years of their known history they lived in com- 
parative obscurity. 

As Dr. Frederick Adams Woods points out in 
" Heredity in Royalty," before the Elector Fred- 
erick III. became King of Prussia in 1701 the only 
member of the family to attain any considerable 
eminence was Albert Achilles, seven generations 
before. 

The counts of Hohenzollern were not idling away 
the hours in their lofty castle, however; they were 
steadily adding to their wealth and territories, 
marrying heiresses and taking away the possessions 
of the neighboring robber barons. The great polit- 
ical machine was strengthened everywhere. 

In the latter part of the 13th century John the 
Third married Margaret, daughter of the Emperor 
Charles IV. and sister of the German Kings Wences- 
laus and Sigismund. In 1415 John's brother Fred- 
erick, by the gift of King Sigismund, became Mar- 
grave of Brandenburg. This was a tremendous step 
forward for the Hohenzollerns, and from then on 
their power increased. The family gained power 



262 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 

rapidly, and in 1701 the Elector Frederick III. be- 
came King of Prussia. 

This sovereign, known as the Great Elector, was 
one of the 32 grandchildren of William the Silent, 
the founder of the Dutch republic. The elector's 
son, Frederick I., married his second cousin, Sophia 
Charlotte, daughter of Sophia the Great, Duchess of 
Brunswick. 

Sophia Charlotte had a fondness for learning, 
which suggests her descendant now on the throne of 
Germany. Her son, Frederick William the First of 
Prussia, was by no means a scholar, frequently dis- 
plajdng his thorough contempt for literature. 

The enemies of the Kaiser delight in attempting 
to show that he resembles this most eccentric of his 
forebears. Frederick William I. was noted, Ma- 
caulay says, for actions never before seen outside a 
madhouse. 

One of the most famous of his exploits was the 
formation of the Potsdam Guard, a company of 
giants gathered from all the nations of Europe. To 
his singularities he added, it is said, the "good old 
gentlemanly vice" of avarice. But it was always the 
avarice for imperial power. 

Whatever his peculiarities and defects may have 
been, they did no harm to Prussia. And it was this 
eccentric who became the father of that most illus- 
trious of the Hohenzollerns, Frederick the Great. 
Frederick did not share his father's hatred for 
learning. Indeed, he did what perhaps no other boy 
has since done — he surreptitiously studied Latin, 



HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 263 

which his ultra-fashionable father had forbidden 
him. 

He became King of Prussia in 1740. His nu- 
merous achievements, the acquisition of Silesia and 
Friesland, his development of the treasury and the 
army are known to every one who has any knowl- 
edge of German history. 

His nephew, Frederick William II., who succeeded 
him, added little glory either to Prussia or to the 
Hohenzollern name, nor were the reigns of this 
sovereign's son and grandson, who bore his name, 
especially distinguished. 

But in 1871, Prussians and Germans being brought 
together by the crushing defeat of France, there 
occurred an event which made the Hohenzollerns 
more than kings of Prussia. Germany became a 
united state. And on the 18th of January, 1871, 
King William VII. of Prussia was proclaimed Ger- 
man Emperor. 

From that day to the accession of the present ' ' war 
lord" seems but a step. William I., as the new Em- 
peror was called, died in March, 1888. His son, Fred- 
erick III., survived him by only four months. And 
William II. ascended the throne. 

Turning to the Romanoffs, or the Romanovs, as 
they are more correctly called, this paradox is found 
— the family of the Czar, who represents absolutism 
to the world, gained the throne by popular election. 

The Romanov had little association with the court 
of Russia before the election of Mikail in 1613. Anas- 
tasia Romanov was one of the consorts of Ivan the 



264 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLEPtNS 

Terrible. She was Mikail's grandmother, his grand- 
father being Ivan's captain, Nikita Romanov. 
Mikail's father was Archbishop Philaret, a great 
churchman, who was long held prisoner by Sigis- 
mimd of Poland. 

In 1598 the ancient ruling line of Rivuk ended 
with the death of Czar Theodore I. For 12 years 
Russia seemed to be in the throes of dissolution, and 
Sweden and Poland , disputed for the possession of 
the land. But on Oct. 24, 1612, the Russians suc- 
ceeded in driving out the Polish invaders. 

Immediately all classes of the population were in- 
vited to send freely elected delegates to Moscow, to 
form a convention which should elect a native Czar. 
On Feb. 21, 1613, largely because of the strong sup- 
port he received from the common people, Michael 
(to use the modern spelling) Theodorovich Romanov 
was elected ' ' Tsar-Gosedar of the Realm of Muscovy 
and the Whole State of Russia." Thus did the 
Russian people of 1613 ordain, of their own free will, 
that the Romanovs should rule OA-er them. 

And there are not a few historians who consider 
that this was a wise procedure. R. Msbet Bain states 
that the renaissance of Russia dates from the acces- 
sion to the throne of Michael Romanov. 

RELUCTANT TO RULE 

Oddly enough, Russia had to hunt for her Ro- 
manov Czar. The delegates of the council searched 
for the boy — he was only 16 years old — for nearly 
a month in vain. At last they found him in the 




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Ipatievsky Monastery, with Ms mother, Martha 
Romanova. They plead with him to accept the office 
to which he had been elected, but he and his mother 
repulsed the delegates, the chronicle states, "with 
tears and great wrath." Only after six months of 
argument would Michael consent to be Czar, yielding 
in the end to the declaration of the delegates that if 
he would not accept the throne they would hold him 
responsible for the utter ruin of Russia. 

Peter the Great was the grandson of the first Czar, 
and he came to the throne in 1696. He was a Czar 
of a new sort, as rough and boisterous as Ivan the 
Terrible, but possessed of courage, shrewdness and 
an insatiable curiosity that led him to wander 
through Europe in quest of new ideas. He put down 
a revolution with the greatest severity, himself be- 
heading 84 of the leaders. 

Winning at last the Neva from the Swedes, he per- 
sonally superintended the building of a fort and a 
church at the place he had decided upon for the site 
of a new capital, and, under his direction, on the 
frontier of his empire, where hitherto had been noth- 
ing but marshland, he caused the great city of St. 
Petersburg to come to being. 

From the death of Peter the Great down to the 
accession of Nicholas II. in 1894, the life of the .Ro- 
manovs has been a tragic history. Few reigns have 
been without desperate conspirators and every Czar 
has constantly before him the fear of death by as- 
sassination, like Paul I. 

Strictly speaking, the present dynasty should be 



266 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 

termed not Romanov but Oldenburg-Romanov, or 
Holstein-Gottorp, for, like the Austrian Emperor, 
Czar Nicholas descends in the female line. He traces 
his ancestry to Peter III., who was the son of Anna 
Romanov, daughter of Peter II. Anna was the wife 
of Charles Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp. 

NICHOLAS II., EMPEROR OF RUSSIA 

Nicholas II. was born in 1868, and succeeded his 
father, Alexander III., in 1894. He was crowned at 
Moscow in 1896. 

He boldly announced himself as an absolutist de- 
termined to carry out the autocratic measures of his 
father. Everyone who was active in any measure 
of liberty or reform was arrested and sentenced to 
death or exile. 

However, in 1889, it was at his initiative that the 
International Peace Conference met at The Hague 
in Holland, having for its object the promotion of 
universal peace. 

In 1905, after crushing several incipient revolu- 
tions, he issued a manifesto guaranteeing the free- 
dom of the press, which was never effected, and a 
constitution was granted, which meant practically 
nothing. His despotic autocracy has varied nothing 
worthy of historic notice and the iron rule has con- 
tinued its chains upon the humanity of Russia. 

FRANZ JOSEPH, EMPEROR OF AUSTRIA 

Franz Joseph came to the throne as successor of 
Ms uncle Ferdinand, in the bloody revolution of 



HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 267 

1848. He was then not yet nineteen years of age. 
He crushed Hungary by the aid of Russia and estab- 
lished the usual Hapsburg rule of blood and iron. 

The Austro-Hungarian state was formed in June, 
1867. The vast diversities of peoples were welded 
together in a conglomerate mass in which revolution 
was continually seething in blood and anguish. 

The heir to the throne died in 1889 and the Em- 
press Elizabeth was assassinated in 1898. The heir to 
the throne was then Francis Ferdinand, nephew of 
the Emperor, whose assassination, 1914, was the 
beginning event leading to the great European con- 
flict. 

WILLIAM II., EMPEROR OF GERMAN! 

The present Emperor of Germany was born at Ber- 
lin in 1859. He succeeded his father, Emperor Fred- 
erick III., in 1888. He was self-confident enough to 
dismiss Bismarck from the Chancellorship in 1890. 

His policy first in evidence was to extend the colo- 
nial possessions of Germany. He immediately came 
into conflict with England in Africa and it was 
greatly feared that he was to be the firebrand of Eu- 
rope. Nevertheless, he kept the peace until 1914. 
When Russia was beaten by Japan, Germany took 
advantage of the weakened condition and strength- 
ened herself everywhere in European affairs. Now 
Japan turns the case around against Germany. 

His character is thoroughly autocratic and he has 
never failed to reiterate his divine right to rule. Un- 
der his positive nature, he has unified the military 



268 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 

power, built up a great navy and extended German 
commerce. 

In 1908, the Reichstag became resentful for his 
one-man power in handling foreign affairs and they 
ordered a demand through Chancellor von Billow 
that his will should give way to constitutional meth- 
ods. This he did in official consent on Nov. 17. It 
was thus hoped that the irritations so constantly oc- 
curring with foreign nations could be more diplo- 
matically served. 

BELGIAN KING AT HEAD OF ARMY 

Germany demanded of Belgium permission to in- 
vade France through Belgian territory. Belgium 
refused, and mobilized her army, of which King Al- 
bert took personal command. Belgium has an army 
of 42,000 on a peace footing and 220,000 on a war 
footing. Germany declared war on Belgium August 
4th and fighting occurred on that day on Belgian soil. 
At Liege 45,000 Germans engaged 40,000 Belgians 
and were repulsed in the first fierce battle, with 
heavy losses. The violation of Belgium's neutrality 
precipitated Great Britain's declaration of war 
against Germany on August 4th. 

HIS WORK ON THE FIELD 

King Albert hates display and ostentation, and 
likes to move quietly and unobtrusively in order to 
see things without being seen and recognized, if pos- 
sible. 

He is a sympathetic figure in plain blue uniform, 



HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 269 

without any insignia whatever to denote the exalted 
rank of the wearer. He is no featherbed soldier. He 
passed nights in bivouac among his gallant soldiers 
who are so bravely defending the fatherland against 
Germany. 

He usually travels in a motor car driven by a sol- 
dier chauffeur and attended by a single officer. 

During the fighting at Diest and Hallen, he passed 
along the army's front, where proximity to the 
enemy made it advisable for him to abandon his car. 

The King with his equally plainly clad aide de 
camp insisted on making his way to the place where 
things were happening. 

In his dust-covered uniform he moved unconcern- 
edly in the midst of his fighting men. Nobody both- 
ered about him because the very simplicity of his 
attire attracted no attention. 

In the bustle and confusion of war it is not perhaps 
to be wondered at if the King of the Belgians, walk- 
ing down the main street of a certain town, rubbed 
shoulders with the officers and men of the national 
army without being recognized. 

On one occasion he made his way to a military 
hospital where there were many wounded Belgians 
as well as Germans. 

SENTRY BARRED MONARCH 

The King wished to enter, but the sentry, with a 
puzzled look, unable to decide what was his rank, 
asked if he had special permission to enter the hos- 
pital. 



270 HAPSBURGS, ROMANOVS, HOHENZOLLERNS 



"No," said the royal visitor quietly, "I have no 
pass, but then I am the King. Perhaps you will per- 
mit me to enter. ' ' 

The sentry smiled incredulously and it required 
the energetic intervention of an aide de camp before 
the soldier would be convinced and allow the King 
of the Belgians to pass. 

STOP! 

By WALLACE GOLDSMITH. 




y%$& $totit~~ 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

GEORGE V v KING OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND AND OP 

THE BRITISH DOMINIONS BEYOND THE SEAS 

AND EMPEROR OF INDIA 

George V. was born in 1865, second son of Ed- 
ward VII. His education was begun as cadet of 
the Royal Navy at 12 years of age. He spent two 
years in cruising about the world. He returned as 
sub-lieutenant and joined the Naval Academy at 
Greenwich. He then served three years in the Medi- 
terranean for a course of training in gunnery. 

In 1890, he was put in command of a gunboat, 
cruising through the West Indies. The next year 
he was promoted to the rank of commander. 

In 1892, his elder brother died, thus making Mm 
heir-apparent to the throne. The next year he at- 
tained the rank of captain in the Royal Navy. 

In 1893, he married his second cousin, Princess 
Victoria Mary, daughter of the Duke and Duchess 
of Teck. He now joined his father in the duties inci- 
dent upon court life. 

In 1901, he was made rear admiral of the British 
Navy, and on his return from a tour of the British 
colonies, he was created Prince of Wales. 

On the death of his father, Edward VII., May 6, 
1910, he succeeded to the throne under the title 
George V. 

271 



272 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

ENGLISH KINSHIP AMONG ROYALTY OF EUROPE 

As granchildren of Queen Victoria these rulers 
are all first cousins or brothers and sisters: 

George V. of England, son of King Edward. 

Queen Maud of Norway, daughter of King Ed- 
ward. 

Emperor William of Germany, son of Princess 
Victoria. 

Queen Sophia Dorothea of Greece, daughter of 
Princess Victoria. 

Tsaritsa of Russia, daughter of Princess Alice. 

Queen Victoria of Spain, daughter of Princess 
Beatrice. 

CROSS RELATIONSHIPS OF EUROPEAN ROYALTY 

1. King George V. of Great Britain and Ireland, 
everybody's cousin. 

2. Tsaritza of Russia, first cousin of King George 
and of Emperor William. 

3. Emperor William of Germany, grandson of 
Queen Victoria. 

4. Queen Maud of Norway, sister of King George. 

5. Queen Sophia of Greece, sister of Emperor Wil- 
liam. 

6. Queen Victoria of Spain, first cousin of Em- 
peror William, of King George and of the Tsaritza 
of Russia. 

7. Nicholas II., Tsar of Russia, first cousin of King 
George V. 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 273 

8. Queen Helena of Italy, daughter of King Nich- 
olas of Montenegro. 

9. King Albert of Belgium, cousin of King George 
V. of Great Britain and Ireland. 

10. Crown Princess Militza of Montenegro, cousin 
of King George. 

11. King Haakon of Norway, first cousin and 
brother-in-law of King George and first cousin of 
the Tsar of Russia. 

12. Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden, grand- 
daughter of Queen Victoria. 

MOHAMMEDAN OR CHRISTIAN" 

We are accustomed to think, as we suppose reason- 
ably, that the older a nation is the more advanced 
it is, especially under the advanced culture of Eu- 
rope, but the fact remains that a few human beings 
have advanced while the many remain selling their 
souls to the soil that they may breathe the air a little 
longer. Ignorance, poverty, superstition and the 
dogged suffering that does not know of anything bet- 
ter remain the same from age to age. 

From the year 590 A. D. to 604, when the Roman 
dominion had broken down, Pope Gregory the Great 
extended the political power of the papacy over the 
greater part of Europe, and thus religion made its 
conquest, even more thorough and lasting than all 
the dominion of the Kings. 

At the death of Mohammed, another religion 
sought to conquer Europe, with even greater des- 



274 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

potism than any mere military conquerors. The 
Arabs, under the crescent, overran the whole of Asia 
Minor and all North Africa. Then they overwhelmed 
Spain and mastered the regions of Pyrenees. 

Their onward sweep to conquer Europe was 
stopped and then driven back by Charles Martel in 
732, but not till 1494 were they driven out of south- 
western Europe by Ferdinand and Isabel. In 1913, 
they were forced back from their eastern hold on 
Europe by the Balkan allies until they retained only 
a small territory around Constantinople. Now as 
the nations tear each other, Turkey threatens to re- 
cover her lost territory. 

The history of developments that brought about 
the present boundary lines and alignments is ro- 
mantic and more full of human interest than any 
imagination of man could ever have pictured. That 
which is recorded deals largely with the fortunes of 
the reigning families of kings. The German people 
have two families for which they have given their 
incalculable treasures of life and gold. They are 
the Hapsburgs of Austria, now represented by Franz 
Joseph, past 84 years of age, and the Hohenzollerus 
of Prussia, now represented by William II. of Ger- 
many, who urges most insistently the divine right of 
kings and wields most persistently the mailed fist 
as the War Lord of Europe. 

Against this central coalition, known as the Triple 
Alliance of Germany, Austria and Italy, has long 
been ranged the triple entente, composed of France, 
England and Russia. 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 275 

EUEOPE AND ITS FATE 

Europe, through all its known history, has been a 
series of flashlights between the battlefield, the 
struggle of grinding industry and the ghastly ceme- 
tery. In the heart of Europe, the Teutonic race, 
more distinctly known as the German people, have 
been hammered, broken to pieces and crushed to- 
gether again ever since Varius sent the legions of 
the Roman Germanicus to be annihilated in the Teu- 
toborg forest. 

Around the outer edge, one after another of the 
divisions of human beings have risen to world power 
and been the despots of their continent. 

Greece under Alexander fought through to the 
borders of humanity on the east, Rome under the 
Caesars went with its conquering legions as far 
west as the sea would allow them to go, Spain swept 
everything into her coffers until her armada launched 
its death energies upon English shores and strewed 
the beach for many miles with sailors' bodies and the 
wrecks of ships and a despot's hopes. France under 
Napoleon undertook to make Europe his empire, and 
would have succeeded except for the snows of 
Russia, the ships of Nelson and the mud that kept 
his army under Grouchy from arriving in time to 
save him from the crushing onslaughts at Waterloo 
from the combined forces of Blucher of Germany 
and Wellington of England. 

The prophecies of the conquered Napoleon have 
so many times come true that the colossal struggle of 



276 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

Europe in 1914 makes almost awe-inspiring his state- 
ment that in a hundred years, about 1914, Europe 
would be all Cossack or all republic. 

Many have written it down that the great Euro- 
pean struggle of 1914 is the twilight of kings. In 
one of his great proclamations calling the German 
empire to war, Emperor William said that the Ger- 
man people were now battling for their right to a 
place in the sun. 

Sweden had its conquering era under Gustavus 
Adolphus and Charles the Twelfth. Holland once 
had its ships on every sea. Each has had some period 
of vast hopes, its shot at the great red target of 
human dominion, and its fall back to the task of man 
to the sweat of his brow upon earth's toil and to the 
agony of the woman to produce men for the ambi- 
tion of kings. Now whose time is it in the wage of 
human struggle to possess the earth! Shall it be 
all Cossack or all republic? Has the twilight of one- 
man power at last arrived ! 

European civilization is a frightful boast as we 
survey its cost, its arrogance, and its vast cesspools 
of human misery. The devouring poverty of its mil- 
lions in city and country clamors to heaven for 
greater social efficiency in human government. Many 
are the fields all over that continent where the soil 
is tilled inch by inch with rude implements of wood 
made by the peasant unable to buy a hoe or a plow 
or to raise a horse. In thousands of places the donkey 
and the woman together as beasts of burden draw 
the meager produce to market. 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 277 

Holland has a population approaching five hun- 
dred to the square mile, Belgium somewhat less, and 
all Germany above three hundred to the square mile. 

Such numbers, every one of whom must live from 
the products of the soil, spells a tragedy of human 
destitution and misery for the submerged millions 
that only the universal conscious of the Gods can 
fully comprehend. Civilization is staggered with the 
mighty blow of a European war, and yet the war of 
the every-day struggle to live is probably even worse. 
The only difference is that no drum beats the death 
of its heroes and cannons boom the long-drawn strug- 
gle to withstand the siege of death. 

GEOGRAPHICAL DESCRIPTION OF NOTED PLACES THAT ARE 
PROMINENT IN THE WAR 

(Prepared by the National Geographical Society) 

Colmar — A town in Alsace, on the main line from 
Strassburg to Basel, about forty miles from the for- 
mer city. It is the seat of government of upper Al- 
sace and the Supreme court of Alsace-Lorraine sits 
there. The population is approximately 50,000 and 
the people are employed mainly in the textile in- 
dustry, sugar making, and machinery factories. 
Around the city there are rich vineyards and or- 
chards. 

FROM LIEGE TO NAMUR 

Prom Liege to Namur — The valley of the Meuse 
from Liege to Namur is picturesque and attractive, 
and is densely populated, even for Belgium, which 



278 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

is the most densely populated country on earth. 
There are many bold cliffs and ruined castles border- 
ing it, while innumerable thriving villages and rich 
pasture fields vie with one another in making a beau- 
tiful landscape. 

Huy, a fortified place, has a citadel rising in ter- 
races from the river, and defensive works hewn out 
of the solid rock. Huy is fourteen miles from Liege 
and twenty-four from Namur. Here Peter the Her- 
mit was buried, and the ruins of the abbey he built 
upon his return from the Crusades are still pointed 
out. 

ESCH AND BREISACH DESCRIBED 

Esch-on-the-Alzette — A town of about 12,000 in- 
habitants just off the main road from Liege to 
Luxemburg, with iron mines and factories. It is 
to be distinguished from Esch-on-the-Sauer, an un- 
important place not far away, which is also called 
Esch-in-the-Hole. 

Breisach — A town in Germany, with a population 
of about 4,000, in the grand duchy of Baden, on the 
south bank of the Rhine. It is on the railroad con- 
necting Freiburg with Colmar. Across the river, 
connected by a bridge, is Neubreisach, with the fort 
of Mortier commanding it. 

NEUBREISACH STRATEGIC POINT 

Neubreisach — A place built in the form of a hexa- 
gon and of great strategic strength. In time of peace 
it has a garrison of 2,300 men. It was fortified by 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 279 

Vauban. In the Franco-Prussian war it was bom- 
barded for eight days and then surrendered. 

Lake Constance — An immense reservoir of the 
Rhine, 207 square miles in area, about 40 miles long 
and 7% miles wide. 

The Vosges — A mountain range of central Europe, 
extending from Basel to Mainz, a distance of 150 
miles. The southern portion has been the frontier 
between France and Germany since the Franco- 
Prussian war. No railway crosses these mountains 
between Saverne and Belfort. 

LILLE A FRENCH STRONGHOLD 

Lille — Where lisle thread comes from. The chief 
town of the department of the north of France, with 
210,000 inhabitants. It is a fortress of the first class, 
with a citadel said to be Vauban 's masterpiece. The 
city is situated in a well irrigated and fertile plain 
on the Deule river, with which numerous canals are 
connected. The present fortifications there were 
largely built in 1858. 

SEILLE RIVER AND LEMBERG 

Seille River — A tributary of the Mosel, which in 
turn flows into the Rhine. 

Lemberg — The capital of Galicia, Austria, not far 
from the Russian frontier. The fourth city of the 
dual monarchy. It is situated on the small river 
Pelter, an affluent of the Bug, in a valley in the Sar- 
matian plateau. It is composed of an inner town and 
four suburbs. 



280 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

The Ardennes — A plateau region extending over 
the Belgian province of Luxemburg, the grand duchy 
of Luxemburg and the French department of Ar- 
dennes. The Belgian Ardennes may be said to ex- 
tend from the Meuse above Dinant on the west to 
the grand duchy of Luxemburg and Rhenish Prussia 
on the east, with their northern boundary repre- 
sented by a line drawn from Dinant through Marche 
to the German frontier, where the Warche River 
crosses the Belgian boundary. On the south the 
boundary is the French frontier and the Semois 
River Valley. Some of the finest forests in all Eu- 
rope are to be found in this territory. The country 
is very rolling and offers itself to military strategy. 
The French Ardennes at some points reach an eleva- 
tion of 1,600 feet. 

Turnhout — A Belgian town near the Dutch fron- 
tier, twenty-five miles northeast of Antwerp and 
the same distance west of north of Diest. It has a 
population of about 1,200 and carries on an important 
textile industry. It also has a breeding establish- 
ment for leeches, which are used for blood-letting in 
moderate quantities. Two miles from the town is 
the reformatory colony of Merxplas, with a popula- 
tion of about 3,000. The prisoners have complete 
liberty of movement except that they must be under 
the supervision of a guardian and must not leave the 
boundary of the settlement. 

Gheel — A Belgian town nearly midway between 
Turnhout and Diest, where Belgium maintains one 
of the world's most noted asylums for the insane,, 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y., 1914 

King Albert of Belgium 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 281 

giving the inmates every opportunity to lead normal 
lives and to keep interested in normal things as long 
as possible. 

Florenville — A small Belgian town immediately 
across the boundary from France and about fifteen 
miles airline distance east of the famous French 
battlefield of Sedan. It is just off of the main high- 
way leading from Dinant to Montmedy and Longwy, 
France. 

Metz — A city of some 70,000 population, the cap- 
ital of the German province of Lorraine, on the Mo- 
selle, less than ten miles from the French frontier 
at a point nearly opposite Verdun. It is eighty 
miles airline distance or ninety-nine miles by rail 
from Strassburg. The Seille joins the Moselle here. 
There are fourteen bridges spanning the Moselle. 
Throughout its entire history, down to 1870, Metz 
never surrendered to an enemy, thus winning for 
itself the name "La Purcelle." It now ranks with 
Strassburg as one of the two great fortresses of west- 
ern Germany. After the French lost it in the Franco- 
Prussian war the Germans strengthened its fortifica- 
tions so as to make it the principal pivot of operations 
against France. It is literally surrounded by strong 
outlying forts. 

Zabern — A town in lower German Alsace situated 
on the Rhine-Marne Canal, twenty-eight miles from 
Strassburg. It is situated at the foot of a pass 
through the Vosges Mountains commanding the road 
from the French frontier to Strassburg. On the 
French side of the Vosges is Pfalzburg. The road 



282 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

between these two places is famous for its scenery, 
which was immortalized by Goethe in "Dichtung und 
Wahrheit." 

Gumbinnen — A town in the extreme northeast of 
Germany, twenty-two miles inland from the Rus- 
sian frontier and about sixty-five miles east of Ko- 
nigsberg. It has a population of some 15,000 and is 
located in a rich farming section. It has a number 
of iron foundries, machine shops and textile and tan- 
ning plants. 

Markirch (French Sainte-Marie-Aux-Mines) — A 
town in upper Alsace, Germany, with a population 
of about 15,000, where desperate fighting is reported 
to have taken place between the French and the Ger- 
mans. It commands one of the passes of the Vosges 
Mountains and is situated in the Valley of Leber. It 
is famous for its textile and dye works. 

Mulhausen — Captured by French troops August 8, 
is the second largest town of Alsace-Lorraine and 
lies twenty-one miles to the south-southwest of 
Strassburg, the capital. It became a free city of the 
German empire in 1273; in the fifteenth century it 
entered into an alliance with the Swiss which lasted 
until 1798, when the city became French. 

It was taken from the French in September, 1870, 
and was ceded to Germany, with Alsace, in 1871. 

Mulhausen is garrisoned by a full infantry brigade, 
comprising about 9,000 men and a full cavalry 
brigade of about 2,500. It has a population of about 
100,000 and is the principal seat of cotton spinning 
in western Germany. 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 283 

Arlon — A small city in the extreme southeast cor- 
ner of Belgium, with a population of upward of 
10,000. It is the chief town of Belgian Luxemburg, 
and is only ten miles north of the French town of 
Longwy. It dates back to the time of the Romans 
and some of the ancient walls continued to the time 
of Louis XIV. Its situation is on a hill 1,200 feet 
above sea level, and being an important strategic 
position, it has a history of several seizures by the 
French, notably in 1647 and 1651. Twenty miles to 
the northwest is the town of Neufchateau, said to be 
the resting point of the left flank of the army invad- 
ing Belgium. 

Ottignies — A town in central Belgium, about two 
miles up the Dyle River from Wavre, which is nine 
miles east of Waterloo. It is famous for its flower 
and vegetable gardens, which supply many nearby 
important cities. It was near here the French gen- 
eral, Grouchy, fought the battle of Wavre while 
Napoleon was at Waterloo. His generals had urged 
him to move his troops in the direction of the firing 
at Waterloo, but he continued up the east bank of the 
Dyle, where he encountered a Prussian force of 
16,000 men, which prevented his passage until too 
late to help his chief at Waterloo. When he heard 
the news of Waterloo he retreated to France via 
Namur, slipping past Blucher. 

Lierre — A Belgian town of about 25,000 popula- 
tion, situated on the River Nethe, about nine miles 
southeast of Antwerp, and eight miles northeast of 
Malines. Its principal industry is the manufacture 



284 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

of silks. The Little Nethe River flows into the Nethe, 
and a fort guards the south bank of the latter, cover- 
ing also the railroad coming from Aerschot, fifteen 
miles to the southeast. 

Herenthals — A town of 10,000 inhabitants in 
northern Belgium, at the crossing of railroads lead- 
ing from Antwerp to Gheel, Turnhout to Aerschot, 
and Lierre to Maeseyck. Textiles in important 
quantities are made here. 

Bouillon — A small town in southern Belgium, ten 
miles northeast of the French town of Sedan. It is 
situated in the beautiful valley of the Seinois and is 
overlooked by the famous castle of Godfrey of Bouil- 
lon. The fifth Godfrey of Bouillon was the great 
crusader and the captor of Jerusalem. He sold his 
castle to finance the crusade. Napoleon III., after 
his capture at Sedan, spent the night here as a 
prisoner. 

Sedan — A town of nearly 20,000 population in 
northern France, where the French and the Prus- 
sians met in 1870, and where the French were forced 
into an unconditional surrender, including their 
king, an army of 82,000, 558 guns, and an immense 
amount of stores. The Germans lost 9,000 and the 
French 17,000. Marshal MacMahon gathered his 
retreating army there on the 31st of August, but 
made no attempt to communicate with Vinoy's corps 
at Mezieres, nor to break through the gap between 
the German Third and Meuse armies. The Germans 
surrounded the city and early next morning the fight- 
ing began. MacMahon was wounded, and command 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 285 

fell upon General Ducrot. He decided to move the 
whole army to the West in the direction of Mezieres. 
At this juncture, after the orders went out, General 
Wimpffen, who had arrived from Algiers on the 
night of the 30th, took command and ordered the 
army to move in the opposite direction. The con- 
fusion that resulted ended with the hoisting of the 
white flag on the village church steeple and the sur- 
render of the French. 

Ostend, the second seajDort of Belgium, has a pop- 
ulation of 42,000 inhabitants. The city owes its im- 
portance to the fact that much of the passenger 
traffic between London and the continent passes 
through this gateway. Its fishing interests are large 
and of recent years the place has acquired a great 
reputation as a sea bathing resort. Wealthy tourists 
from the continent and, in fact, from all over the 
world flock there. At one time the city was strongly 
fortified. It has withstood several sieges famous in 
history. 

Louvain, characterized by Baedeker as "a dull 
place with 38,400 inhabitants, ' ' has been thrown into 
prominence by the present war, but is chiefly of in- 
terest because of its history. The town was at one 
time much larger than now. In the fourteenth cen- 
tury it had 44,000 inhabitants and contained more 
than 2,000 manufactories, mostly engaged in the 
making of cloth. The weavers were a turbulent 
class and caused frequent civil strife. In 1378 dur- 
ing a partisan fight thirteen magistrates of a noble 
family were thrown from a window of a municipal 



286 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

building and were received on the points of spears 
of the populace. 

Lyck, in northeast Germany, reported captured by 
the Russians, has a population of about 12,400 in- 
habitants. Ruins of a castle built by the old Teutonic 
knights has made the place of interest to travelers. 
It lies about twenty miles inside the German border 
from Russia on the east, while a curve in the boun- 
dary lines of the nations from the south brings the 
Russian border even nearer the city. 

Ghent — The capital of East Flanders, Belgium, at 
the confluence of the Scheldt and the Lys. The city 
is divided by the rivers and by canals, some navigable, 
into numerous islands connected by over 200 bridges. 
In the center of the city stands an unfinished belfry, 
a square tower some 300 feet high, built in 1183-1339. 
One of Ghent's most interesting institutions is the 
great Beguinage or home of German and Dutch 
sisterhoods, which constitutes a little city of itself. 
It is surrounded by walls and a moat and contains 
numerous small houses, eighteen convents and a 
church. Seven hundred Beguines — women devoted 
to good works — live there. Ghent was captured by 
the French in 1698, 1708 and 1745. The treaty of 
peace following the war of 1812 between Great 
Britain and the United States was signed here in 
1814. It has a population of approximately 175,000. 
A great exposition was held here during 1913 in 
which Germany, Holland, England and France took 
part. 

Chimay — A town in the extreme southeast of the 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 287 

province of Hainaut, Belgium, dating from the 
seventh century. Its population is approximately 
5,000. Owing to its proximity to the French frontier 
it has undergone many sieges, the last of which was 
in 1640, when Turenne gave orders that it should be 
reduced to such ruin that it could never stand an- 
other. It is situated on the White Water River, 
which in its lower course becomes the Yiroin, a 
tributary of the Meuse. 

Kielce — A town of Russian Poland, capital of the 
Kielce government. It is 152 miles by rail south of 
Warsaw, situated in a picturesque, hilly country. Its 
population exceeds 25,000. The squares and boule- 
vards are lined with handsome modern buildings. 
The principal factories are hemp spinning, cotton 
printing and cement works. 

Nancy to Donon — A stretch of country forty miles 
long on the northeastern frontier of France, said by 
the French government to be the front of its army 
which fell back from Lorraine. It takes in St. Nich- 
olas, Luneville, Avricourt and Cirey, and crosses the 
Marne Canal. This line is about twenty-five miles 
in advance of the main line of frontier defense be- 
tween Toul and Epinal. 

Adun La Roman — A small frontier town on the 
French side of the Franco-German boundary, said by 
the French war office to be the only French soil held 
by the Germans at this time. It is twenty-eight miles 
northeast of Verdun and thirteen miles northwest of 
Metz. 

Visegrad — One of the eight principal military sta- 



288 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

tions of the eastern frontier of Bosnia, forty-three 
miles east of the capital, Serajevo, where the as- 
sassinations took place that were the immediate 
cause of the European war. The town is about ten 
miles west of the Servian frontier. 

Alost — A town in west central Belgium, situated 
on the west bank of the Bender river, midway be- 
tween Brussels and Ghent, sixteen miles from each 
place. It was the ancient capital of what was called 
imperial Flanders. Thierry Maartens here set up 
one of the first printing presses in Europe. Its popu- 
lation is around 33,000. The city and the surround- 
ing region are famous for their hop gardens and 
linen bleaching establishments. The meadows south 
of Alost are often covered with linen undergoing a 
bleaching process. 

Dender river — A stream that rises in two branches 
on the Belgian-French frontier and flows north into 
the Scheldt near Termonde, at a point about half 
way between Antwerp and Ghent. It is, in a general 
way, the eastern border of Flanders. 

Termonde — One of the five fortified places in Bel- 
gium on the Dender river near its confluence with 
the Scheldt. Its fortifications are old, consisting of 
two forts and a walled city. It was here that Louis 
XIV. was forced to beat a hasty retreat in 1667, be- 
cause its defenders opened the dikes and flooded the 
country, just as the Hollanders are said to propose 
to do if their territory is invaded. The population 
is approximately 11,000. 

Mons — A city in southern Belgium, the capital of 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 289 

Hainaut since the eighth century, at which time 
Charlemagne recognized it as such. It has had a long 
military history, with numerous sieges, being many 
times fortified, dismantled, and fortified again, and 
being finally made an unfortified city in 1862. It is 
a flourishing city of about 30,000 inhabitants and 
is the central point of Belgium's great coal district, 
the Borinage. 

Valenciennes — A French frontier town with a 
population of about 28,000, thirty miles southeast of 
Lille at the confluence of the Rhonelle and the 
Scheldt. It is in the heart of a great industrial dis- 
trict. It. is a French edition of the city of Liege, 
except that it is unfortified, the old fortifications 
having been transformed into pleasure grounds and 
drives in 1892. It has a long military history: In 
1677 it was taken by Louis XIV. after an eight day 
siege. In 1793 it surrendered after a bombardment 
of forty-three days, and in 1815 it defended itself 
successfully. 

Blamont — A French town between Avricourt, the 
frontier station on the road from Luneville to Strass- 
burg, which the German government claims an army 
under the Bavarian crown prince has reached. This 
is twenty-five miles west by south of Zabern, which is 
reported held by the French two or three days ago, 
and thirty miles northeast of the French fortress at 
Epinal. 

Kiau-Chau — A large inlet on. the south side of the 
promontory of Shantung, in China, owned by the 
Germans and now the object of the attack of the 



290 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

Japanese. It was seized in 1897 by the German fleet, 
nominally to obtain reparation for the murder of 
two German missionaries, and in the negotiations 
which followed China leased an area around the bay 
containing 117 square miles to the Germans for a 
period of ninety-nine years, over which Germany 
was given all rights of a sovereign. 

China furthermore agreed to give Germany a veto 
upon any ordinance enacted in the territory not 
leased, for a distance of thirty-two miles back from 
the water front at any point. 

Tsing Tao is the capital. About 60,000 Chinese 
live in the ceded area. Tsing Tao is about 350 miles 
southeast of Peking, and about 130 miles from the 
British stronghold at Wei Hai Wei, which occupies 
the point of the Shantung peninsula. It lies imme- 
diately across the Yellow sea from the southern end 
of Corea, and is about 175 miles down that sea from 
Port Arthur. 

THE KINGDOM OF SERVIA 

Servia is mountainous and agricultural. It is 
tilled by small landholders. The people are generally 
illiterate, superstitious and little provided with 
modern instruments or methods, but they are brave 
and strong in devotion to their country. 

The Serbs entered that country about 637 A. D., 
through an invitation of the Emperor Heraclius to 
assist him in driving out his enemy, the Avors. The 
Serbs came in overwhelming numbers and occupied 
the country. About 850, they were converted to 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 291 

Christianity. During the following two centuries 
they were in continual war with the Bulgarians, who 
were Asiatic invaders from the north. 

In 1050, Michael was declared king of Servia, in- 
dependent of any tribute to Byzantium. Servia 
increased in power during the three following 
centuries until it was in possession of the whole of 
the Balkan peninsula and most of the Hellenic penin- 
sula. In 1389 the Turkish invasion overwhelmed 
them. Its subjugation became complete in 1459. 
The nobility perished and the people were reduced 
to a peasantry near to serfdom. But despotism can 
never keep its success. 

The Russian war with Turkey in 1828 forced 
Turkey to grant independence to Servia and to 
recognize their war chieftain, Milosh, as hereditary 
prince, but Turkish garrisons were not withdrawn 
till 1867. 

As a result of the war of Russia against Turkey 
in 1877, the complete independence of Servia as a 
principality was settled by the treaty of Berlin. 

In 1882 Servia was proclaimed a kingdom. Be- 
cause of the extreme democratic course of the rad- 
icals rising to power under his liberal constitution, 
King Milan abdicated in favor of his son, Alexan- 
der I. 

No sooner did Alexander get the power in his own 
hands than he became a tyrant. He abolished the 
liberal constitution and lived a life of despotism and 
riotous dissipation. Despairing of an heir being 
born to them, Draga, the queen, attempted to impose 



292 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

a child upon the people as her own. This being dis- 
covered added to their extreme unpopularity. 

On June 11, 1903, a band of conspirators, com- 
posed of the leading men in the kingdom, entered the 
palace and assassinated the king and queen, two of 
her brothers and the two principal cabinet officers. 
It appeared to have the approval of all the people. 

A rival royal line, of which Prince Peter, living 
as exile in Geneva, was called to the throne. Several 
nations severed diplomatic relations with Servia and 
Great Britain did not resume communication for 
three years. 

THE AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN EMPIRE — THE HOUSE 
OP HAPSBURG 

The Imperial royal house of Austria-Hungary 
derives its name from the castle of Habichtsburg 
(Hawk's Castle) on the river Aar, in Switzerland. 
It was built by the Bishop of Strassburg about 1027 
A. D. The nephew of that Bishop was the first count 
of Hapsburg. The real founder of the House of 
Hapsburg was the son of Werner II., who held ex- 
tensive estates and districts about Lake Lucerne. 

Rudolph I. founded the greatness of the empire, 
as the powers of the house increased through death 
and conquest, by being elected to the Imperial throne 
of Germany in 1273 and in reducing surrounding 
territories to subjection. 

A vast extension to the Hapsburg power came in 
1477, when Maximilian married the daughter of 
Charles the Bold. His son Philip married Jouma, 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 293 

daughter of Ferdinand and Isabel, and their son, 
Charles V., who gathered all into a vast empire and 
founded the Spanish line of Hapsburgs. 

The revolt of the rest of Europe against the des- 
potism of the Spanish Hapsburgs deluged Europe 
with blood and destruction for generations. The de- 
cline of the Spanish Hapsburgs came with the heroic 
revolt of Holland in the religious wars of Protestant 
against Catholic, and in the defeat of the Spanish 
Armada sent to crush England. 

The male line of the Austrian Hapsburgs became 
extinct at the death of Charles VI., in 1740. His 
daughter, Maria Theresa, secured the throne through 
the Progmatic Sanction. She married Francis I. of 
Lorraine, and their descendants continued the House 
of Hapsburg till the present time. They had fifteen 
children, of whom the ill-fated Marie Antoinette was 
one. She was beheaded in the French revolution 
with her husband, Louis XVI. Her great grand- 
daughter, Marie Louisa, became the wife of Na- 
poleon after he divorced Josephine. Her great- 
granddaughter was the wife of Pedro I. of Brazil, 
and her great-grandson was Maximilian I., executed 
for the unsuccessful attempt to conquer Mexico, 
toward the close of the American civil war. 

BELGIUM 

Belgium consists of nine provinces having a total 
area of 11,373 miles and about nine million inhab- 
itants. Wars of aggression are forbidden by the 
constitution. Its army is only for defense. 



294 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

When Holland achieved its independence from 
Spain, Belgium remained Catholic and Spanish. It 
has been the scene of many bloody wars and has been 
frequently tossed back and forth among the nations 
as a prize. 

Language allied them to the French, and therefore, 
against the Germanic side of religious interests. In 
1830 the Belgians revolted against the Dutch do- 
minion, established over them by the Congress of 
Vienna in 1815, at the fall of Napoleon. The agree- 
ment drawn up by the revolutionists is known as the 
Constitution of 1831. Prince Leopold of Saxe-Co- 
burg, was elected king and signed the constitution 
on June 4. 

Leopold II., his son, was a shrewd speculator, and 
he financed the International African Association, 
which established the Congo Free State and made 
Leopold sovereign. By will made in 1889, these vast 
possessions were to be transferred to Belgium at his 
death. 

In 1870 the neutrality and independence of Bel- 
gium was assured by both Germans and French, and 
was finally embodied in a treaty between France, 
Prussia and England. 

THE BELGIANS 

The "Almanach de Gotha" gives the following 
curious statistics as to the languages spoken by the 
Belgian people : There are three national languages 
in Belgium — French, Flemish and German. Of the 
7,423,784 inhabitants of the country (1910), French 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 295 

alone was spoken by 2,833,334; Flemish alone by 
3,220,662; German alone by 31,415. Both French 
and Flemish were spoken by 871,288; French and 
German by 74,993; German and Flemish by 8,652, 
while 52,547 spoke all three of the national languages. 
At the same time, there were 330,893 inhabitants who 
spoke neither one of the three languages named — 
their native tongue being evidently Walloon, Dutch 
or some local dialect. 

This certainly indicates a remarkable mix-up of 
languages — and the Belgians are a mix-up of stocks. 
The majority are Flemings, who are people of mixed 
Teutonic and Celtic blood, inhabiting the provinces 
of Antwerp, Limburg, Brabant and West Flanders, 
and speaking Flemish, which is a low German lan- 
guage not differing greatly from the Dutch. It is 
on an exactly equal official standing with French in 
Belgium, and has its own literature and newspapers. 

The French-speaking Belgians are very much like 
Frenchmen, but are racially of about the same stock 
as the Flemings. The Walloons are a race of Celtic 
origin in South Belgium, speaking a dialect of 
French. French is the language ordinarily spoken 
in Brussels, and the bulk of the Belgian literature 
is in French. 

In spite of their diversity of tongues and origins, 
the Belgians are one in their devotion to the Belgian 
name and national existence, and have proved that 
they are able and willing, even if they cannot ex- 
change a word of speech with one another, to lay 
down their lives in the defense of their common flag. 



296 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

"The Battleground of Europe." That is Bel- 
gium's title, and it is as correct today as it was in 
Napoleon's time and in preceding centuries. From 
the earliest times nations have fought their battles 
on Belgian soil. The ancient cities of Liege and 
Dinant, of Antwerp, Ghent and Bruges, all have a 
storied past to which war has lent a romance if not 
a charm. The wheels of the gun carriages and com- 
missariat wagons of Germany, France and Great 
Britain travel today routes which were traversed by 
the heavy chariots of the Romans and the crude pro- 
vision cars of the Franks. The land between the 
Meuse and the Rhine has provided battlefields rich 
in plunder. Today's struggle is but history repeat- 
ing itself. Beneath the fields in which so many 
Germans and Belgians have been buried during the 
past few days the "unreturning dead" of other days 
sleep the last long sleep. Guns, pistols, swords, 
metal trimmings from uniforms, shako buttons and 
military ornaments are often upturned by the plows 
of Belgian farmers, relics and reminders of grim 
wars of other days. 

Some of the world's most famous battles were 
fought on Belgian soil. Old-time Emperors of 
Germany settled their grievances with French Kings. 
British generals won reputations there. The history 
of the country has indeed been linked with that of 
Great Britain since a daughter of Alfred the Great, 
the monarch who was cuffed for burning the cakes, 
married a Count of Flanders. The early day Counts 
Avere ever at war with fierce Norman invaders, 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 297 

German Princes and French usurpers. France, 
Spain and Austria in turn conquered the country, 
and there, 99 years ago, Napoleon Bonaparte met 
his conquerer on the field of Waterloo. 

Even since Napoleonic days Belgium has con- 
stantly been the scene of bloody conflicts. After the 
fall of the Corsican the country was placed under 
Austrian rule. This not proving a success the 
country was united with Holland under William of 
Orange as King of the Netherlands. But this was 
not a happy marriage, as in race and religion the 
two countries were diametrically opposed. 

This antagonism culminated in the revolution of 
1830 when, after a short but fierce fight in the streets 
of Brussels, the Dutch soldiers were beaten and the 
provisional government of Belgium was formed. 
Great Britain and France intervened and, after 
negotiations, Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg was 
placed upon the throne as the first King of the Bel- 
gians. He made his triumphal entry into Brussels, 
the capital of his kingdom, July 19, 1831. 

This did not end Belgium's troubles. The King of 
Holland failed to take kindly to the slicing of so 
prosperous a section from his none too large domain. 
Leopold I. was on the throne but three weeks before 
he had to change the pleasures of court life for 
"battle's magnificently stern array." France sent 
50,000 troops to his aid, but the quarrel with Holland 
lasted for eight years. After a conference of the 
powers in London peace was restored and since that 
time Belgium has been a separate kingdom. It 



298 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

enjoyed repose until this month when the German 
troops inarched across it with fire and sword toward 
France. 

After his eight years' conflict with Holland Leo- 
pold I. enjoyed a long and prosperous reign. It is 
a notable fact, indeed, that when in 1848 Europe 
was convulsed by revolutions the Belgian throne was 
one of the few on the continent which remained un- 
shaken. Leopold II., of none too savory reputation, 
whose relations with "the Baroness/' with Cleo de 
Merode and other fascinating women, provided Bel- 
gium and the world with some of the spice of life, 
ruled the country from 1865 until 1909, when he was 
succeeded by his nephew, the present King Albert. 

Under her three Kings Belgium prospered 
enormously. In art, commerce and manufactures she 
won an important place in Europe, quite out of pro- 
portion to her area and population. 

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC 

The Romans named the region Gallia or Gaul, 
which we now know as France. Its conquest was 
completed by Caesar B. C. 51. Clovis, a chief of the 
Salien Franks, put an end to Roman dominion A. D. 
486. Ten years later Clovis embraced Christianity. 

Under Philip Augustus, about the year 1200 A. D., 
France acquired great additions to its territory by 
conquest, and reached a leading place in Europe. 

The next great advancement of France was in the 
victories over the English by the Maid of Orleans, 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 299 

Joan of Arc, which enabled Charles VII. to be 
crowned at Rheims. 

Charles VIII., who began his reign in 1483, in- 
vaded Italy and brought about the relations that have 
since existed between France and the rest of Europe. 

Stormy generations followed, of religious wars 
and economic rebellions, until the colossal upheaval 
known as the French Revolution. At that time the 
Church owned one-fifth of the land of France, the 
Nobility another fifth, and the King another. As 
these were exempt from all taxes and other burdens, 
the whole extravagant system was borne by the poor 
and ignorant two-fifths. Four-fifths of their toil was 
required to support the State. France became a 
slaughter-house of infuriated strife out of which 
came forth Napoleon and his empire. 

Napoleon Bonaparte was elected by universal 
suffrage to be Emperor of the French as Napoleon I. 
in 1804. The Pope came to Paris and crowned Na- 
poleon and Josephine with all the splendor of Church 
and State. 

The next year Napoleon assumed the title of King 
of Italy. In probably the most brilliant series of 
conquests ever known, Napoleon overthrew the 
powers of Austria and Russia and compelled the 
Peace of Pressburg by which the existence of the 
Holy Roman Empire came to an end. 

England was the disaster in his side. Nelson, at 
Trafalgar, overthrew the combined French and 
Spanish fleets and gained complete mastery of the 
seas. 



300 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

In 1807 Napoleon took possession of Portugal and 
the next year mastered Spain. 

In 1809 Napoleon reached the height of his power 
by overthrowing an Austrian coalition at Wagram. 
Having divorced Josephine, he married the Arch- 
duchess Maria Louisa, daughter of the Emperor of 
Austria. 

During this regime was a period of the most re- 
markable intellectual progress. Napoleon moulded 
French institutions and gave the Nation laws lasting 
for a hundred years. 

In 1812 Napoleon endeavored to crush Russian 
opposition and lost 400,000 men in the rigors of a 
Russian winter. All Europe now arose against him. 
In a series of brilliant battles he defeated his enemies 
until the great contest at Leipsic, where he was over- 
whelmed. Paris was soon taken and Napoleon sent 
into exile to the isle of Elba. 

But the Bourbons were said never to learn any- 
thing and never to forget anything. They came back 
into power in France with all the arrogance and 
despoliation of former times. The call of the people 
for Napoleon amounted to hero-worship near to deifi- 
cation. On March 1, 1815, Napoleon landed in France 
from Elba. 

Crowds followed him like a savior, and the soldiers 
sent to stop his progress went over to his side. The 
news spread consternation through the courts of 
Europe. Europe combined at once against him. The 
first victories were his, but on June 18, the Germans, 
under Blucher, and the English, under Wellington, 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 301 

gave him his final, crushing defeat at Waterloo. A 
month later Napoleon was sent in exile to the island 
of St. Helena. 

Thirty-three years of political chaos passed and 
the last of the Bourbon kings, Louis Philippe, abdi- 
cated, and a republic was proclaimed. 

In December, of 1848, Louis Napoleon, nephew of 
Napoleon L, was selected President. Within two 
years he had himself elected Emperor of the French, 
under the title Napoleon III. He soon made Paris 
the diplomatic capital of Europe. But he aspired for 
too much. He undertook to control the politics of all 
Europe. 

In 1864, during the American civil war, he tried 
to make an empire of Mexico, but the United States 
suppressed its rebellion in time to turn its victorious 
armies toward Mexico. Maximilian's supporters de- 
serted him, France did not dare to come to his 
relief, and Maximilian was captured and executed. 
This had much to do with breaking Napoleon's 
prestige in Europe. The rise of Prussia threatened 
his grasp on Continental affairs and the rising power 
of democracy in his own country imperiled him in 
such a way that only a war could cause the necessary 
union of the people to save his throne. 

Bismarck was the genius of the Prussian govern- 
ment. In a seven weeks' war, Prussia had triumphed 
over Austria and its army was rapidly being made 
efficient for a struggle with France. Bismarck 
needed a war to bring together the many small 
German principalities into one empire; France 



302 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

needed it to bring the people into support of the 
throne, and the hatred between French Catholics and 
Prussian Protestants made war seem desirable to 
both sides. 

The proposition to put a Prussian prince upon the 
throne of Spain afforded the stirring excuse. The 
French ambassador made a demand on William I. 
of Prussia that no Prussian prince should ever be a 
candidate for the throne of Spain. This was con- 
temptuously rejected. France declared war, July 
19, 1870. Six weeks later Napoleon surrendered at 
Sedan. Two days later the legislative body of France 
declared the Emperor and his descendants forever 
excluded from the throne. France was again de- 
clared a republic. 

France was compelled to cede to Germany the 
provinces of Alsace and Lorraine, and to pay an in- 
demnity amounting to one billion dollars in gold. 
French military affairs were in charge of German 
soldiers until the last franc of indemnity was paid 
in 1873. The interest paid amounted to four hundred 
million more. 

The religious orders being opposed to the republic, 
in 1879 their schools were dissolved and all were 
exiled who refused to comply with the law. After a 
long political struggle, France secured religious 
toleration and obtained control of its educational 
interests. 

Several attempts were made by the Monarchists to 
overthrow the republic. The frightful reign of the 
mobs in the spring of 1871, known as the commune, 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 303 

appeared for a time to prove the French incapable of 
a government except under military despotism. 

In 1897 France announced its alliance with Russia 
as an answer to the formation of the Triple Alliance, 
composed of Germany, Austria and Italy. This was 
strengthened in 1904 by an agreement with England. 

When Russia was defeated by Japan, the oppor- 
tunity was taken by Germany. Germany began to 
press hard, diplomatically, upon France, and to make 
demands concerning French activity in Morocco. 
Great Britain took the side of France, and, at the 
international conference in Algeciras, in 1906, Rus- 
sia, Italy and Spain took the part of France, thus de- 
feating the intentions of Germany. From that time 
on till the outbreak of war in 1914, the utmost prepa- 
rations for war, under all the secrecy attainable, were 
vigorously continued by the Triple Alliance and 
opposing Entente. 

THE GERMAN EMPIRE 

Germany consists of four kingdoms, six grand- 
duchies, five duchies, seven principalities, three free 
towns, and Alsace-Lorraine, which is known as Im- 
perial Territory, altogether an area of 208,810 square 
miles. To make a comparison for Americans, Texas 
has 265,896 square miles. The greatest length in 
Germany is about the same as that of Texas, while 
its breadth much less than that of Texas. Germany 
has a population of about 65,000,000, Texas about 
4,000,000. 

More than three millions of Germans have come to 



304 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

America, of which above two million came to the 
United States. About 38 million of the Germans in 
Germany are Protestant, and 22 million Roman 
Catholic. 

Germany has colonies in Africa, and in the Pacific 
to the extent of about 2,700,000 square miles. 

RESOURCES OF THE GERMAN EMPIRE — ACCORDING TO 
LATEST STATISTICS 

GERMANY 

Kingdoms 4 Principalities 7 

Grand Duchies 6 Free Towns 3 

Duchies 5 Reichland .... Alsace-Lorraine 

COLONIES 

In Africa 4 In the Pacific, each group of 

In Asia 1 islands being counted as 

one 8 

POPULATION, GERMANY 

Census of Dec. 1, 1910 

Male 32,040,166 Population per 

Female 32,885,827 square mile 310.4 

Total 64,925,993 Total estimate on 

June 30, 1913... 66,096,000 

CITIES OVER 500,000 

Census of Dec. 1, 1910 

Berlin 2,071,257 Dresden 548,308 

Hamburg 931,035 Cologne 516,527 

Munich 596,467 Breslau 512,105 

Leipzig 589,850 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 305 

AREA IN SQUARE MILES 

Germany 208,780 Colonies (estimated) 1,027,820 

Empire 1,236,600 

BIRTHS AND DEATHS 
1912 

Births 1,925,883 Surplus of births . . . 839,887 

Deaths 1,085,996 

The birth rate has shown a marked decline in recent years: 

In 1876 it was, per 1,000 In 1909, per 1,000 inhab- 

inhabitants 42.6 itants 32.0 

In 1896, per 1,000 inhab- In 1911, per 1,000 inhab- 
itants 37.5 itants 29.5 

In 1906, per 1,000 inhab- 
itants 34.1 

EMIGRATION 

1912 

To United States 13,706 To Africa 4 

To Brazil 225 To Asia 

To other American To Australia 322 

countries 4,198 Total 19,356 

To European countries 901 

GERMANS IN OCCUPATIONS 

Occupation Census of June 12, 1907 

Agriculture and Domestic and other 

cattle raising... . 9,732,472 service 1,736,450 

Forestry, hunting Professions 1,738,530 

and fishing 150,785 Without profession 

Mining, metal or occupation. . . 3,404,983 

works and other Total 31,497,100 

industries 11,256,254 

Commerce and 

trade 3,477,626 



306 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

THE ELECTORATE 

General Election, 1912 

Electors on lists .. . 14,442,387 National Liberals 

Actual voters 12,260,731 voting 1,662,670 

Socialists voting.. 4,250,399 Radicals voting... 1,497,041 

Members of Centre Conservatives vot- 

Party voting.... 1,996,848 ing 1,126,270 

CHIEF PARTIES IN THE REICHSTAG 

April 1, 1914 

Socialists 112 Radicals 44 

Centre Party 89 Poles 18 

National Liberals 47 Free Conservatives 13 

Conservatives 42 

RELIGION 

Census of Dec. 1, 1910 

Protestants 39,991,421 Jews 615,021 

Catholics 23,821,453 Others and unclas- 

Other Christians.. 283,946 shied 214,152 

Per Centum of Population 

Protestants 61.6 Jews 1.0 

Catholics 36.7 Others and unclassified. . 0.3 

Other Christians 0.4 

NATIONAL WEALTH 

1913, Estimated 

Total wealth Russia $40,000,000,000 

of Germany $ 60,500,000,000 Austria - Hun- 
United States. 130,000,000,000 gary 25,000,000,000 

Great Britain 80,000,000,000 Italy 20,000,000,000 

France 65,000,000,000 Belgium 9,000,000,000 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 307 

THE HOHENZOLLERNS 

The Royal House of Prussia attained the dignity 
of head of the German Empire, January 18, 1871. 

It obtains its name from the Castle of Zollern, 
erected on a high steep (Hohen) near Hechingen in 
Swabia. The family is traceable quite authentically 
back to about 1150 a.d. 

It was not till 1849 that the various branches of 
the family relinquished their claims to royal succes- 
sion, in favor of the King of Prussia, Frederick 
William IV. Leopold, his son, was offered the throne 
of Spain in 1870, and was the immediate excuse for 
the declaration of war between France and Prussia, 
which united all the German provinces into one gov- 
ernment, known as the German Empire. 

The real greatness of the House of Hohenzollern 
was founded in the pledge of Brandenburg, given to 
Frederick VI. in 1415 for a loan to Emperor Sigis- 
mund. He was thus made hereditary elector of 
Brandenburg, with the power that ultimately 
brought everything to the House of Hohenzollern. 

The history of the Hohenzollern family became 
the history of Brandenburg from the fifteenth cen- 
tury on, till absorbed in the history of Prussia and 
the German Empire. 

THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE 

The Russian empire is the largest continuous 
empire in the world. It occupies eastern Europe 
and northern Asia, being one-seventh of the total 



308 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

land-surface of the world. About 120 nationalities 
are represented among the regular inhabitants, 
speaking about fifty languages. The religion of the 
empire is that of the Greek Church, known as the 
Orthodox Catholic. 

Russia began its era of modern civilization as a 
factor in European affairs with Peter the Great, in 
the period of his life between 1689 and 1725. Pre- 
vious to that time it was a mass of warring hoards, 
beating upon the edge of civilization for a period 
recorded in history of about 800 years. 

The Slavs appeared about the year 550 and over- 
ran the regions of the Baltic, driving the Finns north, 
a tribe of Northmen, called the Pus, in the ninth 
century. In 862 Rurik made Novgorod his capital, 
and laid the foundations of a reign lasting seven 
centuries. 

Olga, his son's widow, introduced Christianity, 
and was baptized in Constantinople in 957. 

However, tribal wars continued, mingled with 
plagues and famines, and the great Mongol invasion 
under Genghis Khan. About the time of the dis- 
covery of America, Ivan the Great drove out the 
Mongols and extended the empire into Asia. 

In 1613, in the midst of a pestilence that swept 
away fully a third of the people, Michael Feodorvich, 
the first of the Romanoffs, was elected Czar of Rus- 
sia, though it was three or four generations later 
that Peter the Great bore the title as Emperor of 
Russia, Peter the Great founded St. Petersburg 
in 1703. 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 309 

Catherine II., born in 1762, was the most pictur- 
esque figure in all Russian affairs. Though capri- 
cious and immoral, she founded churches and schools, 
established helpful laws, and promoted the industrial 
interests of her country in an amazing degree. She 
waged successful wars and greatly enlarged the boun- 
daries of her country. 

In 1796, in the triple dismemberment of Poland, 
she secured two-thirds of that unhappy country. 

Alexander I., in the struggles with Napoleon, 
raised his country to a first-class power in the affairs 
of Europe. He was the founder of the Holy Alliance, 
which caused the formation of what Americans know 
the Monroe doctrine. 

Nicholas II., the Emperor of Russia during the 
greatest of all European conflicts, ascended the 
throne at the age of 26 years, on the death of his 
father, Nov. 1, 1894. 

HOLLAND 

The Kingdom of the Netherlands (lowlands) lies 
mostly eight feet or more below the level of the sea. 
The rivers flow several feet above the surface of the 
surrounding country. The Hollanders have had the 
amazing history of having had to fight for ages not 
only religious and political enemies, but also the 
storms and waves of the sea. The enemies tore off 
large sections of their political territory and the sea 
had seized not less than 2,275 square miles of their 
natural territory. The Zuyder Zee (South Lake) 
now covers most of that submerged land. 



310 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

Holland has about 6,000,000 inhabitants. They 
belong mostly to the Reformed Church. Their gov- 
ernment is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy. 

Its history is largely that of the surrounding con- 
querors. While under Spanish dominion its com- 
merce covered every sea, and yet the greatest suffer- 
ing of the people was under the terrors of the 
Spanish inquisition and the conquest of the Duke 
of Alva. 

In 1566 the people, contemptuously referred to as 
"Gueux" or "Beggars," had among them Prince 
William of Orange, who was destined to be the 
greatest factor in their history, if not in the progress 
of political Protestantism. The history of Spanish 
attempts to crush Protestantism in Holland is one of 
the most thrilling pages in history. The Hollanders 
showed the world the devotion of an entire nation 
ready to be annihilated rather than be subjugated 
to the Spanish will. The people of Leyden cut the 
dykes and gave their country to the sea rather than 
let in harbor the hideous atrocities of the Army of 
Alva. 

The defeat of the Spanish Armada by the heroism 
of Elizabeth's sailors and by the great storm at sea, 
relieved the crushing force put upon Holland and 
enabled Prince Maurice, after twelve years' of merci- 
less war, to force a truce from the Spanish sovereign. 
Then began the struggle with England for the su- 
premacy of the seas, to be won by England, and 
Holland declined in commerce almost to nothingness 
during the eighteenth century. 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 311 

The conquests and readjustments of Holland 
under the Napoleon period. 

The Congress of Vienna in 1913 created the king- 
dom of United Provinces, including most of Bel- 
gium, but the Belgians obtained peaceful separation 
through the intervention of France and England in 
1840. 

The Fundamental Law, revised in 1887, distinctly 
specifies and defines the rights of the king not to be 
by divine right but by contract. 

Princess Wilhelmina assumed the throne in 1898. 
In 1901, she was married to Prince Henry of Meck- 
lenburg-Schwerin. 

The Hague became the seat of the International 
Peace Conference, which hoped to bring about con- 
ditions of conference and agreement that would do 
away with war. 

THE HAGUE 

Den Haag, capital of the Netherlands since the 
end of the sixteenth century, is two miles from the 
North Sea. A beautiful artificial lake is in the cen- 
ter of the city. Around this Lake Vijver the munici- 
pal buildings and most precious public possessions, 
such as palaces, museums, etc. 

The Summer residence of the Royal Family is on 
the east side of the city. Here was held the Inter- 
national Peace Conference which met in 1899. 

In 1910, Andrew Carnegie gave a foundation of 
$10,000,000 for the purpose of promoting interna- 
tional peace. It is in the hands of twenty-seven 



312 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

trustees. When war has been abolished it is to be 
devoted to the next greatest evil in the world. 

Its immediate program was to make a scientific 
study of the cause and cost of war, the codification 
of international law, the furtherance of the move- 
ment for the judicial settlement of international dis- 
putes, and to establish an international court of 
justice. 

COLONIES OF THE WAREING NATION'S 

No matter how disastrous the war or how over- 
whelming the destruction of any nation engaged in 
it, the people will remain very much as they were, 
but the colonies of the defeated countries ma}^ be 
expected to be seized by the victors and they may 
thus make its greatest changes. 

Great Britain has the most to lose and next comes 
Germany. Great Britain has an alien population of 
300,000,000 in India which could be led into revolt 
if England's navy was destroyed. The great federa- 
tions of Australia and Canada would probably set 
up independent governments. 

In Africa, Asia, and the islands of the Pacific, 
Germany today owns 1,134,239 square miles of ter- 
ritory, with a population of 14,883,950 thoroughly 
dominated but only partially convinced subjects. 
Germany is an impressive colonial empire, even if 
one does not count the German dominance in Asiatic 
Turkey and the outpost colonies of trade-controlling 
Germans in Spanish-speaking republics of South 
America. Germany's actual territory outside of 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 313 

Europe is five times larger than all the German Em- 
pire in Europe. 

The African possessions turned over to Great 
Britain would make solid a vast empire of inconceiv- 
able value in wealth and strength. The German 
possessions in East Africa are about equal to the 
territory of coast states from Maine to Elordia. In 
the west, the German possessions are as large as the 
area of France, Spain, Italy, and the British Isles 
combined. 

The important thing to realize is that nearly all 
this territory is mutually contiguous and without 
natural boundaries. Germany in Africa is separated 
from England only by a surveyor's arbitrary line. 
Another thing should be carefully noticed : Through- 
out all central and southern Africa, wherever Ger- 
man soil does not actually touch upon British, the 
two domains are separated in every instance by 
either Belgian, Portuguese, or French territory. 
France, Belgium, and Portugal are allies of England. 

There are large bodies of British, French, and Ger- 
man troops in Africa, and when it comes to treaties 
of peace, actual possession of colonial teritory 
counts nine-tenths in the settlement, such acquisi- 
tion being either permanently retained or bartered 
for a heavy compensating price. 

We find England almost impregnably established 
in another Gibraltar on the small island of Hong- 
Kong, on the south coast of China. This citadel 
island, only ten miles long, which is also England's 
easternmost naval base, contains, with a strip of 



314 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

adjacent mainland and some other lesser islands, 390 
square miles of British territory. This is the only 
land England owns in China. 

The German flag waves over hundreds of settle- 
ments in what is called, administratively, German 
New Guinea, including the Marshall and Solomon 
islands, the widely scattered Carolines, and the 
Marianas. Far out in mid-Pacific lie the two Sa- 
moan Isles which belong to Germany. Interspersed 
all through this distributed territory, but far more 
numerous and populous, are scattered the British 
Pacific islands: the Straits Settlements, Borneo, 
British Guinea, the Gilberts, Fiji, the Papuans, and 
many other groups. On the big island of New Guinea 
England and Germany occupy adjoining quarters of 
the total area, Holland owning the other half as well 
as the neighboring rich groups of Java, the Celebes, 
and Moluccas, on which Germany has looked for 
years with covetous eyes. 

The joint possessions of Germany and England 
stretch for nearly 8,000 miles from Singapore to the 
edge of the Marquesas Islands. 

France has ships and soldiers at Tonkin, in south 
China; Russia keeps some sea-going destroyers at 
Vladivostock, and if Holland joins Belgium in de- 
fense of their European integrity Dutch men-of-war 
will be heard from in the Pacific. 

In the event of Germany overwhelming Europe 
on land, there remains the conquering of the sea, and, 
if that remains to the British fleet, and terms of peace 
are not soon settled, the war may indeed pass around 



SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 315 

the world and the sun never set on the final struggle 
of territorial adjustment. 

American Prosperity and the War 

America felt an earthquake shock in financial af- 
fairs in the collapse of the European markets and 
securities. Great losses are to fall on some and great 
gains on others, but the destroyers must lose their 
trade and they must be supplied with what they have 
ceased to make. 

Unparalleled opportunity knocks at the American 
door — unparalleled in mercy and unparalleled in 
business. 

Germany's magnificent foreign trade showing nas 
been the result, first, of co-operation between the state 
and the manufacturers and between the manufactur- 
ers themselves; second, of an infinitely completer 
study of foreign markets than any other nation has 
ever undertaken; third, a heavily subsidized mer- 
chant marine, co-operating at both ends of the line 
with the exporters ; fourth, an adequate foreign bank- 
ing system and numerous foreign branches of Ger- 
man houses, the one facilitating and cheapening ex- 
change and the other making it possible to handle 
German goods direct, not, as most American commod- 
ities have been sold abroad, through the houses of 
competing nations. These things, backed by the Ger- 
man's indomitable perseverance, industry and self- 
confidence, have been responsible for the fact that 
this nation, starting ten years ago well behind the 
United States in foreign trade, has overcome the lat- 



316 SIDE LIGHTS ON THE GREAT ISSUES 

ter's lead and but for the outbreak of the war would 
probably have led us by some hundreds of millions 
of dollars in this year's totals. Very roughly speak- 
ing, the foreign trade totals — import and export — of 
the three leading nations of the world for the year 
1914 would have been somewhat as follows: Great 
Britain, $6,500,000,000; Germany, $4,750,000,000; 
United States, $4,500,000,000. 

Aug. 27. — The Belgian government, through its 
ministers to the United States and other neutral 
powers, has formally protested against the German 
airship attacks upon Antwerp, as a gross violation 
of article 26 of the fourth Hague convention of 1907, 
concerning ' ' Laws and Usages of War. ' ' This article 
reads : 

"The commander of the attacking troops, before 
undertaking a bombardment, will, except in case of 
open assault, do all that lies in his power to give 
warning to the authorities." 

Article 25 forbids bombardment "by any means 
whatsoever of towns which are not defended." Of 
course Antwerp is "defended," though it has not yet 
been attacked, except from the air. No German 
force has appeared before it with a summons to 
surrender. 

It is denied in Antwerp that any sort of warning 
of the intended attack was given. As both of the 
attacks have been made under cover of darkness they 
can hardly be described as "open assault." Non- 
combatants were given no opportunity to escape. 



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